Last Year, Gross National Income per Capita Increased to $35,373 for the First Time in 3 Years

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] Last year, South Korea's per capita Gross National Income (GNI) rose due to the annual average decline in the won-dollar exchange rate, surpassing $35,000 and reversing to an upward trend after three years.

According to the 2020 National Accounts (final) and 2021 National Accounts (preliminary) statistics released by the Bank of Korea on the 8th, last year's per capita GNI was 40,482,000 won, an increase of 7.2% from the previous year, and in US dollars, it was $35,373, up 10.5% from the previous year.

Per capita GNI is a statistic that divides the total income earned by nationals domestically and abroad by the population and is used as an indicator to understand the living standards of a country's citizens.

Per capita Gross Disposable Income (PGDI), which is the income households can freely use for consumption or savings, was 22,317,000 won, an increase of 5.2% compared to the previous year, and in US dollars, it was $19,501, up 8.6% from the previous year.

Last year's preliminary real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate was 4.1% annually, the highest level in 11 years since 2010 (6.8%). This was due to the turnaround in private consumption and exports, and the continued increase in government consumption and facility investment.

By economic activity, construction (-2.6%) continued to decline, but manufacturing and services turned to growth. Manufacturing increased by 6.9%, centered on computers, electronics and optical equipment, machinery and equipment, while services increased by 3.8%, led by wholesale and retail, accommodation and food services, transportation, finance and insurance, and information and communication.

The confirmed GDP growth rate for 2020 was -0.7% annually, 0.2 percentage points higher than the preliminary figure.

Last year's nominal GDP was 2,071.7 trillion won, growing 6.7% from the previous year. This is the highest growth rate in 11 years since 2010, which recorded 9.7%. Due to the decline in the won-dollar exchange rate, the nominal GDP in US dollars increased by 10.1% from the previous year to $1.8102 trillion.

The GDP deflator, which is the ratio of nominal GDP to real GDP, rose 2.5% from the previous year. This is the highest level in six years since 2015 (3.2%).

The total savings rate rose 0.3 percentage points from the previous year to 36.3%, and the gross domestic investment rate increased by 0.1 percentage points from the previous year to 31.8%.

The household net savings rate was 11.6%, down 0.8 percentage points from the previous year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.