South Korea vs the United States: Economic Indicators Comparison
The United States with a GDP of $20.5T ranked the 1st largest economy in the world, while South Korea ranked 12th with $1.6T. By GDP 5-years average growth and GDP per capita, the United States and South Korea ranked 113th vs 93rd and 11th vs 33rd, respectively.
Gross Domestic Product & Income
| Stat |  South Korea |  United States |
|---|---|---|
| GDP | $1.6T | $20.5T |
| GDP growth, 1 year | 2.7% | 2.9% |
| GDP growth, 5-years average | 3% | 2.4% |
| Population | 51.5M | 325.1M |
| GDP per capita | $31k | $63k |
| GDP per capita growth | 2.33% | 2.29% |
| Purchasing Power Parity conversion factor | 860.51 | 1 |
| Price level ratio of PPP conversion factor GDP to market exchange rate | 0.78 | 1 |
| GDP per capita, PPP adjusted | $41k | $63k |
| GNI, Atlas method | $1.6T | $20.6T |
| GNI per capita | $31k | $63k |
| GNI, PPP adjusted | $2.1T | $20.8T |
| GNI per capita, PPP adjusted | $40k | $64k |
Financial system and Human development
| Stat | South Korea | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Income Tax Rate | 42% | 37% |
| Corporate Tax Rate | 25% | 21% |
| Inflation, consumer prices | 1.5% | 2.4% |
| Inflation, GDP deflator | 0.3% | 2.4% |
| Unemployment | 3.8% | 3.9% |
| Economic Freedom Index | 74 | 76.6 |
| Personal Freedom Index | 8.84 | 8.55 |
| Human Freedom Index | 8.15 | 8.39 |
| Property Rights Index | 82.5 | 81.8 |
| Judical Effectiveness Index | 61 | 83.7 |
| Business Freedom Index | 90.5 | 83.3 |
| Fiscal Health Index | 96.7 | 54.3 |
| Labor Freedom Index | 56.2 | 87.9 |
| Investment Freedom Index | 70 | 85 |
| Financial Freedom Index | 70 | 80 |
| Trade Freedom Index | 80 | 79.8 |
| Monetary Freedom Index | 82.1 | 75.5 |
| Government Spending Index | 67.7 | 56.5 |
| Tax Burden Index | 63.9 | 74.6 |
| Government Integrity Index | 67.5 | 77.2 |
| Corruption Perceptions Index | 57 | 71 |
| Life expectancy at birth, years | 82.6 | 78.5 |
| Suicide mortality rate, per 100,000 people | 26.9 | 15.3 |
| Mortality caused by road traffic injury, per 100,000 people | 9.8 | 12.4 |
| Intentional homicides, per 100,000 people | 0.6 | 5.3 |
| International tourism, number of arrivals | 15.3M | 79.7M |
Government debt & reserves
| Stat | South Korea | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Central government debt, % of GDP | 40.7% | 105.8% |
| External debt stocks, % of GNI | N/A | N/A |
| External debt stocks | N/A | N/A |
| Short-term debt, % of total reserves | N/A | N/A |
| Total debt service, % of exports and primary income | N/A | N/A |
| Adjusted net savings including particulate emission damage, % of GNI | 20.1% | 6.1% |
| Gross savings, % of GDP | 34.7% | 18.6% |
| Gross capital formation, % of GDP | 30.2% | 21% |
| Total reserves including gold | $403.1B | $449.9B |
| Foreign direct investment net inflows | $14.5B | $258.4B |
Exports, imports and economic structure
| Stat | South Korea | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Exports of goods and services, % of GDP | 44% | 12.2% |
| Imports of goods and services, % of GDP | 39% | 15.3% |
| Current account balance (balance of payments) | $76.4B | -$491B |
| Revenue excluding grants, % of GDP | 27.8% | 17.2% |
| Grants excluding technical cooperation, BoP | $6.7M | N/A |
| Personal remittances received | $7.1B | $6.7B |
| Industry including construction value added, % of GDP | 35.1% | 18.2% |
| Agriculture, forestry and fishing value added, % of GDP | 2% | 0.9% |
| Charges for the use of intellectual property, payments BoP | $9.9B | $56.1B |
| Charges for the use of intellectual property, receipts BoP | $7.8B | $128.7B |
| Expense, % of GDP | 25.4% | 22.4% |
| Government Expenditure, % of GDP | 32.8% | 38.1% |
