Travel services in Korea
Korea: Travel services was 19.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Travel services in Korea, 1976–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of service imports, BoP.
Analysis
In 2025, travel services in Korea stood at 19.3%.
That represents a change of up 2.7% on the previous year and down 14.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, travel services in Korea peaked at 28.4% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 3.9%, in 1976.
That places Korea 101st out of 198 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 50 years of available data.
Travel services in Korea, year by year
| Year | % of service imports, BoP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 3.9% | — |
| 1977 | 5.1% | +31.7% |
| 1978 | 6.5% | +28.0% |
| 1979 | 11.6% | +77.6% |
| 1980 | 9.3% | -19.1% |
| 1981 | 10.7% | +14.3% |
| 1982 | 15.8% | +48.3% |
| 1983 | 13.9% | -12.2% |
| 1984 | 14.3% | +2.6% |
| 1985 | 16.7% | +17.3% |
| 1986 | 15.0% | -10.6% |
| 1987 | 12.9% | -13.9% |
| 1988 | 19.5% | +51.2% |
| 1989 | 27.6% | +41.6% |
| 1990 | 26.9% | -2.6% |
| 1991 | 26.3% | -2.2% |
| 1992 | 23.6% | -10.3% |
| 1993 | 23.4% | -0.9% |
| 1994 | 24.2% | +3.6% |
| 1995 | 24.6% | +1.3% |
| 1996 | 25.3% | +2.9% |
| 1997 | 23.7% | -6.3% |
| 1998 | 14.1% | -40.3% |
| 1999 | 18.0% | +27.0% |
| 2000 | 21.4% | +18.9% |
| 2001 | 23.1% | +8.0% |
| 2002 | 28.4% | +23.2% |
| 2003 | 24.9% | -12.4% |
| 2004 | 24.5% | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 25.9% | +5.5% |
| 2006 | 26.9% | +3.7% |
| 2007 | 26.0% | -3.2% |
| 2008 | 19.6% | -24.7% |
| 2009 | 18.4% | -6.2% |
| 2010 | 19.4% | +5.4% |
| 2011 | 19.4% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 19.1% | -1.7% |
| 2013 | 19.7% | +3.5% |
| 2014 | 20.1% | +2.0% |
| 2015 | 22.5% | +11.9% |
| 2016 | 24.3% | +7.8% |
| 2017 | 25.1% | +3.2% |
| 2018 | 26.4% | +5.4% |
| 2019 | 25.1% | -5.1% |
| 2020 | 15.5% | -37.9% |
| 2021 | 14.3% | -8.1% |
| 2022 | 15.2% | +6.4% |
| 2023 | 18.8% | +23.7% |
| 2024 | 18.8% | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 19.3% | +2.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.8% | 3.9% | 11.6% | 4 |
| 1980s | 15.6% | 9.3% | 27.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 23.0% | 14.1% | 26.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 23.9% | 18.4% | 28.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 22.1% | 19.1% | 26.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.0% | 14.3% | 19.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Korea
- 98 North Macedonia 20.1% compare
- 99 Cambodia 20.0% compare
- 100 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 19.9% compare
- 102 Thailand 19.1% compare
- 103 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 19.1% compare
- 104 Austria 18.7% compare
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 travel services in Korea?
- Travel services in Korea was 19.3% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest travel services recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 28.4% in 2002.
- What is the lowest travel services recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.9% in 1976.
- How does Korea rank for travel services?
- Korea ranks 101st out of 198 countries with data for 2025.
- Is travel services rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 14.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 Travel services (% of service imports, 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
Travel services cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by nonresidents during visits to that economy, or acquired from other economies by residents during visits to these other economies. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service imports which are services provided by non-residents to residents.