Last year, South Korea's gross national income (GNI) per capita in dollar terms decreased by nearly 8% due to factors such as the rise in the won-dollar exchange rate. The preliminary figures for real gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate for the fourth quarter and the entire year of last year were recorded at -0.4% and 2.6%, respectively, the same as the flash estimates announced in January.
On the 7th, the Bank of Korea released the '2022 Fourth Quarter and Annual National Income (Preliminary)' statistics, reporting that last year's per capita GNI was $32,661, down 7.7% from $35,373 in 2021. In terms of the Korean won, it was 4.3% higher than the previous year.
South Korea's per capita GNI first entered the $30,000 range in 2017 ($31,734), increased to $33,564 in 2018, then declined for two consecutive years in 2019 ($32,204) and 2020 ($32,004). It rebounded in 2021 ($35,373) for the first time in three years, but last year, due to the sharp rise in the exchange rate, per capita GNI fell back again.
The real GDP growth rate for the fourth quarter of last year (preliminary, quarter-on-quarter) was recorded at -0.4%, the same figure as the flash estimate announced on January 26.
Quarterly growth rates showed negative figures in the first (-1.3%) and second (-3.0%) quarters of 2020 when COVID-19 spread, then turned positive in the third quarter (2.3%) and maintained growth, but shifted to contraction in the fourth quarter of last year.
Looking at the fourth quarter growth rate by sector, government consumption, construction, and facility investment increased, while exports and private consumption decreased.
Exports decreased by 4.6%, centered on chemical products, computers, electronics, and optical devices, and private consumption fell by 0.6% due to reduced spending on goods such as home appliances, clothing, and footwear, as well as services like food and accommodation, and entertainment and culture.
Construction investment increased by 0.8%, mainly in civil engineering construction, and facility investment rose by 2.7%, centered on machinery.
Last year's economic growth rate was 2.6%, the same as the flash estimate in January.
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