South Korea Facts

by countryaah · Published June 3, 2019 · Updated April 25, 2020

South Korea, Republic of Korea, State of East Asia; 99 270 km², 51.6 million residents (2019).South Korea encompasses the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and is separated from North Korea (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) by a demilitarized zone. South Korea includes some 3,500 small islands off the coast in the south and west, of which 650 are inhabited. The largest of them is Cheju (1,825 km² ) at the far south. The capital is Seoul (10.4 million residents, 2014).

Country facts

Taehan min-guk / Republic of Korea
Country abbreviation: KR
Area: 99 270 km²
Population (2019): 51.6 million residents
Capital: Seoul
Main language: Korean
State: Republic
Head of State: Moon Jae In (President)
Head of Government: Chung Sye Kyun
Per capita GDP (2018): US $ 31363
GNI per capita (2018): US $ 30,600
Coin unit: 1 won = 100 chon
Currency code: KRW
Country number (telephony): 82
Internet domain name: kr
Time difference compared to Sweden: +8
National Day: August 15 (Proclamation of the Republic, 1948)

Nature

Land use: forest (64%), agricultural land (21%), other (15%)
Highest mountain: Halla (1,950 m above sea level)

Population

Population density (2019): 520 residents per km²
Natural population growth (2019): 0.0%; birthrate 6 ‰, deathrate 6 ‰
Age structure (2019): 0-14 years (13%), 15-64 (72%), 65- (15%)
Average life expectancy (2019): men 80 years, women 86 years
Infant mortality (2019): 3 per 1,000 live births
Population forecast 2050: 48 million residents
HDI (2017): 0.903 (place 22 of 189)
Urbanization rate (2019): 82%
Most populous cities (2014): Seoul (10.4 million residents), Busan (3.6 million), Inchon (2.9 million)

Business

Industry’s contribution to GDP (2017): agriculture (2%), industry (39%), service (59%)
Exports (2017): US $ 577,400 million
Main export products: semiconductors, vehicles, communication equipment
Main exporting countries: China, USA, Vietnam
Imports (2017): US $ 457,500 million
Main import products: oil, electronic equipment, gas
Main importing countries: China, Japan, USA
Railway network (2016): 4,000 km

South Korea is mountainous with the Taebaek mountains along the east coast, which is therefore straight and steep. The Sobaek Mountains are located in the southwest. The west coast, which faces the Yellow Sea, is, like the south coast, severely disintegrated with a large number of peninsulas and islands as well as inlets and sound. The climate is monsoon-influenced and temperate.

The president is the head of state and supreme responsible for the executive power. The president is elected for five years. Of Parliament’s 300 members in 2012, 246 were elected by universal suffrage for four years.

In the early 1960s, the country began to be transformed from agricultural to industrial and became one of Asia’s four “tigers” (along with Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan). The change took place with the help of foreign (mainly US and Japanese) capital, with an export-oriented development strategy and with strong state indirect influence and control of the market economy. In recent years, the country has faced growing competition from other Asian countries with lower pay levels. The business sector is dominated by the five large-scale industrial groups Hyundai, Samsung, Daewoo, LG and SK.