Foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of GDP (%) in South Korea
South Korea: Foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of GDP (%) was 0.8% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of GDP in South Korea, 2000–2024
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 0.8% for foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp in 2024.
The figure is down 21.3% on the previous year and up 36.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp in South Korea peaked at 1.9% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2015.
That places South Korea 156th out of 214 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
Foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of GDP (%) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 1.9% | — |
| 2001 | 1.1% | -40.3% |
| 2002 | 0.8% | -26.7% |
| 2003 | 1.0% | +14.2% |
| 2004 | 1.6% | +67.8% |
| 2005 | 1.4% | -13.1% |
| 2006 | 0.8% | -40.4% |
| 2007 | 0.7% | -13.6% |
| 2008 | 1.0% | +41.8% |
| 2009 | 0.9% | -10.5% |
| 2010 | 0.8% | -13.2% |
| 2011 | 0.7% | -6.1% |
| 2012 | 0.7% | -4.9% |
| 2013 | 0.9% | +25.1% |
| 2014 | 0.6% | -33.0% |
| 2015 | 0.3% | -55.3% |
| 2016 | 0.8% | +187.5% |
| 2017 | 1.0% | +36.6% |
| 2018 | 0.7% | -36.2% |
| 2019 | 0.6% | -17.6% |
| 2020 | 0.5% | -8.7% |
| 2021 | 1.1% | +126.0% |
| 2022 | 1.4% | +22.5% |
| 2023 | 1.0% | -25.8% |
| 2024 | 0.8% | -21.3% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 0.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 2.6%, 32% of the median. (69 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 0.8% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.1%, 39% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 1.1% | 0.7% | 1.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.7% | 0.3% | 1.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.0% | 0.5% | 1.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More economy & growth data for South Korea
- Real gdp growth, annual growth rate -49.75 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 7.89 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0085 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 307.17 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 2.74 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0062 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 224.29 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 4.58 % change on previous year (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0047 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per capita 168.75 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp in South Korea?
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp in South Korea was 0.8% in 2024, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 1.9% in 2000.
- What is the lowest foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2015.
- How does South Korea rank for foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp?
- South Korea ranks 156th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of gdp rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 36.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Foreign direct investment, net inflows, as a proportion of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).