ICT service exports in Korea
Korea: ICT service exports was 12.5% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
ICT service exports in Korea, 1976–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of service exports, BoP.
Analysis
Korea recorded 12.5% for ict service exports in 2025. That is the highest value across all 50 years on record.
That represents a change of up 7.2% on the previous year and up 247.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, ict service exports in Korea peaked at 12.5% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 1976.
Korea ranks 47th of 189 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
ICT service exports in Korea, year by year
| Year | % of service exports, BoP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 0.1% | — |
| 1977 | 0.1% | +9.7% |
| 1978 | 0.2% | +37.2% |
| 1979 | 0.3% | +38.6% |
| 1980 | 0.4% | +48.5% |
| 1981 | 0.4% | -5.4% |
| 1982 | 0.4% | +12.9% |
| 1983 | 0.7% | +69.8% |
| 1984 | 0.5% | -36.1% |
| 1985 | 0.7% | +41.2% |
| 1986 | 2.1% | +220.0% |
| 1987 | 2.0% | -6.7% |
| 1988 | 3.2% | +63.6% |
| 1989 | 1.5% | -53.9% |
| 1990 | 2.4% | +60.3% |
| 1991 | 2.1% | -13.0% |
| 1992 | 2.1% | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 1.8% | -15.7% |
| 1994 | 1.8% | +1.2% |
| 1995 | 1.5% | -16.1% |
| 1996 | 1.7% | +12.3% |
| 1997 | 1.5% | -11.0% |
| 1998 | 1.7% | +13.7% |
| 1999 | 0.9% | -45.4% |
| 2000 | 0.8% | -15.5% |
| 2001 | 0.8% | -1.5% |
| 2002 | 0.6% | -20.2% |
| 2003 | 0.5% | -12.8% |
| 2004 | 0.5% | -7.6% |
| 2005 | 0.6% | +16.5% |
| 2006 | 1.3% | +117.9% |
| 2007 | 1.3% | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 1.0% | -17.4% |
| 2009 | 1.2% | +17.1% |
| 2010 | 1.2% | +2.2% |
| 2011 | 1.5% | +17.1% |
| 2012 | 1.5% | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 2.1% | +41.9% |
| 2014 | 2.7% | +28.1% |
| 2015 | 3.6% | +34.2% |
| 2016 | 3.9% | +9.2% |
| 2017 | 5.1% | +30.2% |
| 2018 | 6.4% | +24.9% |
| 2019 | 7.4% | +15.8% |
| 2020 | 10.1% | +37.4% |
| 2021 | 12.3% | +21.2% |
| 2022 | 10.9% | -11.3% |
| 2023 | 11.9% | +9.0% |
| 2024 | 11.6% | -2.3% |
| 2025 | 12.5% | +7.2% |
Korea compared with similar countries
- Korea's 12.5% is above the median for high income countries, which is 7.6%, 1.6× the median. (68 countries reporting)
- Korea's 12.5% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.5%, 3.6× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where ICT service exports in Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | +220.0% | 0.7% | 2.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.3% | 4 |
| 1980s | 1.2% | 0.4% | 3.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.8% | 0.9% | 2.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.9% | 0.5% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.5% | 1.2% | 7.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.6% | 10.1% | 12.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Korea
More economy & growth data for Korea
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 41.23 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.022 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 797.74 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 15.80 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 22.87 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0084 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 305.78 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 4.39 % change on previous year (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2332 includes gold, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per capita 8,447 includes gold, current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is ict service exports in Korea?
- Ict service exports in Korea was 12.5% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest ict service exports recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 12.5% in 2025.
- What is the lowest ict service exports recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 1976.
- How does Korea rank for ict service exports?
- Korea ranks 47th out of 189 countries with data for 2025.
- Is ict service exports rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 247.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of ICT service exports (% of service exports, BoP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Information and communication technology service exports include computer and communications services (telecommunications and postal and courier services) and information services (computer data and news-related service transactions).