CIA World Fact Book, 2004/Korea, South


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!| Background:
 * Korea was an independent kingdom under Chinese suzerainty for most of the past millennium. Following its victory in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905, Japan occupied Korea; five years later it formally annexed the entire peninsula. After World War II, a republic was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a Communist-style government was installed in the north. During the Korean War (1950-1953), US and other UN forces intervened to defend South Korea from North Korean attacks supported by the Chinese. An armistice was signed in 1953, splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone at about the 38th parallel. Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth with per capita income rising to roughly 18 times the level of North Korea. In 1987, South Korean voters elected ROH Tae-woo to the presidency, ending 26 years of military dictatorships. South Korea today is a fully functioning modern democracy. In June 2000, a historic first North-South summit took place between the South's President KIM Tae-chung and the North's leader KIM Jong Il.
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!| Location: !| Geographic coordinates: !| Map references: !| Area: land: 98,190 sq km water: 290 sq km !| Area - comparative: !| Land boundaries: border countries: North Korea 238 km !| Coastline: !| Maritime claims: continental shelf: not specified contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm !| Climate: !| Terrain: !| Elevation extremes: highest point: Halla-san 1,950 m !| Natural resources: !| Land use: permanent crops: 1.95% other: 80.87% (2001) !| Irrigated land: !| Natural hazards: !| Environment - current issues: !| Environment - international agreements: signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements !| Geography - note:
 * Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea
 * 37 00 N, 127 30 E
 * Asia
 * total: 98,480 sq km
 * slightly larger than Indiana
 * total: 238 km
 * 2,413 km
 * territorial sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the Korea Strait
 * temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter
 * mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south
 * lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
 * coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential
 * arable land: 17.18%
 * 11,590 sq km (1998 est.)
 * occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; low-level seismic activity common in southwest
 * air pollution in large cities; acid rain; water pollution from the discharge of sewage and industrial effluents; drift net fishing
 * party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
 * strategic location on Korea Strait
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!| Population: !| Age structure: 15-64 years: 71.4% (male 17,625,302; female 17,072,029) 65 years and over: 8.2% (male 1,597,085; female 2,398,821) (2004 est.) !| Median age: male: 32.8 years female: 34.7 years (2004 est.) !| Population growth rate: !| Birth rate: !| Death rate: !| Net migration rate: !| Sex ratio: under 15 years: 1.12 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 est.) !| Infant mortality rate: female: 6.68 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 7.64 deaths/1,000 live births !| Life expectancy at birth: male: 71.96 years female: 79.54 years (2004 est.) !| Total fertility rate: !| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: !| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: !| HIV/AIDS - deaths: !| Nationality: adjective: Korean !| Ethnic groups: !| Religions: !| Languages: !| Literacy: total population: 97.9% male: 99.2% female: 96.6% (2002)
 * 48,598,175 (July 2004 est.)
 * 0-14 years: 20.4% (male 5,223,344; female 4,681,594)
 * total: 33.7 years
 * 0.62% (2004 est.)
 * 12.33 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 6.13 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
 * at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female
 * total: 7.18 deaths/1,000 live births
 * total population: 75.58 years
 * 1.56 children born/woman (2004 est.)
 * less than 0.1% (2003 est.)
 * 8,300 (2003 est.)
 * less than 200 (2003 est.)
 * noun: Korean(s)
 * homogeneous (except for about 20,000 Chinese)
 * no affiliation 46%, Christian 26%, Buddhist 26%, Confucianist 1%, other 1%
 * Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school
 * definition: age 15 and over can read and write
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!| Country name: conventional short form: South Korea local long form: Taehan-min'guk abbreviation: ROK note: the South Koreans generally use the term "Han'guk" to refer to their country local short form: none !| Government type: !| Capital: !| Administrative divisions: : provinces: Cheju-do, Cholla-bukto (North Cholla), Cholla-namdo (South Cholla), Ch'ungch'ong-bukto (North Ch'ungch'ong), Ch'ungch'ong-namdo (South Ch'ungch'ong), Kangwon-do, Kyonggi-do, Kyongsang-bukto (North Kyongsang), Kyongsang-namdo (South Kyongsang) : metropolitan cities: Inch'on-gwangyoksi (Inchon), Kwangju-gwangyoksi (Kwangju), Pusan-gwangyoksi (Pusan), Soul-t'ukpyolsi (Seoul), Taegu-gwangyoksi (Taegu), Taejon-gwangyoksi (Taejon), Ulsan-gwangyoksi (Ulsan) !| Independence: !| National holiday: !| Constitution: !| Legal system: !| Suffrage: !| Executive branch: head of government: Prime Minister LEE Hae-chan (since 25 May 2004); Deputy Prime Ministers KIM Jin-pyo (since 28 January 2005), LEE Hun-jai (since 10 February 2004), and OH Myung (since 18 October 2004) elections: president elected by popular vote for single five-year term; election last held 19 December 2002 (next to be held in December 2007); prime minister appointed by president with consent of National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by president on prime minister's recommendation election results: results of the 19 December 2002 election - ROH Moo-hyun elected president; percent of vote - ROH Moo-hyun (MDP) 48.9%; LEE Hoi-chang (GNP) 46.6%; other 4.5% cabinet: State Council appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation !| Legislative branch: election results: percent of vote by party - Uri 51%, GNP 41%, DLP 3%, MDP 3%, others 2%; seats by party - Uri 152, GNP 121, DLP 10, MDP 9, others 7 (2004) elections: last held 15 April 2004 (next to be held in April 2008; by-elections scheduled for April 2005)) !| Judicial branch: !| Political parties and leaders: !| Political pressure groups and leaders: !| International organization participation: !| Diplomatic representation in the US: chancery: 2450 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle consulate(s): New York, Tamuning (Guam) FAX: [1] (202) 387-0205 telephone: [1] (202) 939-5600 !| Diplomatic representation from the US: embassy: 82 Sejong-no, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-710 mailing address: American Embassy, Unit 15550, APO AP 96205-5550 telephone: [82] (2) 397-4114 FAX: [82] (2) 738-8845 !| Flag description:
 * conventional long form: Republic of Korea
 * republic
 * Seoul
 * 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 7 metropolitan cities (gwangyoksi, singular and plural)
 * 15 August 1945 (from Japan)
 * Liberation Day, 15 August (1945)
 * 17 July 1948
 * combines elements of continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought
 * 20 years of age; universal
 * chief of state: President ROH Moo-hyun (since 25 February 2003)
 * unicameral National Assembly or Kukhoe (299 seats -- members elected for four-year terms; 243 in single-seat constituencies, 56 by proportional representation
 * Supreme Court (justices appointed by president with consent of National Assembly); Constitutional Court (justices appointed by president based partly on nominations by National Assembly and Chief Justice of the court)
 * Democratic Labor Party or DLP [KIM Hye-kyung, chairwoman]; Grand National Party or GNP [PARK Geun-hye, chairwoman]; Millennium Democratic Party or MDP [HAHN Hwa-kap, chairman]; United Liberal Democrats or ULD [KIM Hak-won, chairman]; Uri Party [LIM Chae-jung, interim chairman]
 * Federation of Korean Industries; Federation of Korean Trade Unions; Korean Confederation of Trade Unions; Korean National Council of Churches; Korean Traders Association; Korean Veterans' Association; National Council of Labor Unions; National Democratic Alliance of Korea; National Federation of Farmers' Associations; National Federation of Student Associations
 * AfDB, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CP, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA, MIGA, MINURSO, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
 * chief of mission: Ambassador HONG Seok-hyun
 * chief of mission: Ambassador Christopher R. HILL
 * white with a red (top) and blue yin-yang symbol in the center; there is a different black trigram from the ancient I Ching (Book of Changes) in each corner of the white field
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!| Economy - overview: !| GDP: !| GDP - real growth rate: !| GDP - per capita: !| GDP - composition by sector: industry: 36.4% services: 60% (2003 est.) !| Investment (gross fixed): !| Population below poverty line: !| Household income or consumption by percentage share: highest 10%: 22.5% (1999 est.) !| Distribution of family income - Gini index: !| Inflation rate (consumer prices): !| Labor force: !| Labor force - by occupation: !| Unemployment rate: !| Budget: expenditures: $128.7 billion, including capital expenditures of $23.5 billion (2003) !| Public debt: !| Agriculture - products: !| Industries: !| Industrial production growth rate: !| Electricity - production: !| Electricity - consumption: !| Electricity - exports: !| Electricity - imports: !| Oil - production: !| Oil - consumption: !| Oil - exports: !| Oil - imports: !| Natural gas - production: !| Natural gas - consumption: !| Natural gas - exports: !| Natural gas - imports: !| Current account balance: !| Exports: !| Exports - commodities: !| Exports - partners: !| Imports: !| Imports - commodities: !| Imports - partners: !| Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: !| Debt - external: !| Economic aid - donor: !| Currency: !| Currency code: !| Exchange rates: !| Fiscal year:
 * Since the early 1960s, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern world economy. Four decades ago GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Today its GDP per capita is 18 times North Korea's and equal to the lesser economies of the European Union. This success through the late 1980s was achieved by a system of close government/business ties, including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labor effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. The Asian financial crisis of 1997-99 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model, including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. Growth plunged to a negative 6.6% in 1998, then strongly recovered to 10.8% in 1999 and 9.2% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3% in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms had stalled. Led by consumer spending and exports, growth in 2002 was an impressive 6.2%, despite anemic global growth, followed by moderate 2.8% growth in 2003. In 2003 the National Assembly approved legislation reducing the six-day work week to five days.
 * purchasing power parity - $857.8 billion (2003 est.)
 * 3.1% (2003 est.)
 * purchasing power parity - $17,800 (2003 est.)
 * agriculture: 3.6%
 * 29.6% of GDP (2003)
 * 4% (2001 est.)
 * lowest 10%: 2.9%
 * 31.6 (1993)
 * 3.6% (2003 est.)
 * 22.92 million (2003)
 * agriculture 8.8%, industry 19.1%, services 72.1% (2001)
 * 3.4% (2003 est.)
 * revenues: $135.5 billion
 * 13.8% of GDP (2003)
 * rice, root crops, barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish
 * electronics, telecommunications, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel
 * 5.1% (2003 est.)
 * 290.7 billion kWh (2001)
 * 270.3 billion kWh (2001)
 * 0 kWh (2001)
 * 0 kWh (2001)
 * 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * 2.14 million bbl/day (2001 est.)
 * 804,700 bbl/day (2001)
 * 2.965 million bbl/day (2001)
 * 0 cu m (2001 est.)
 * 20.92 billion cu m (2001 est.)
 * 0 cu m (2001 est.)
 * 21.11 billion cu m (2001 est.)
 * $12.32 billion (2003)
 * $201.3 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
 * Semiconductors, wireless telecommunications equipment, motor vehicles, computers, steel, ships, petrochemicals
 * China 18.2%, US 17.8%, Japan 9%, Hong Kong 7.6% (2003)
 * $175.6 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
 * machinery, electronics and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, organic chemicals, plastics
 * Japan 20.3%, US 13.9%, China 12.3%, Saudi Arabia 5.2% (2003)
 * $155.4 billion (2003)
 * $130.3 billion (2003 est.)
 * ODA $200 million
 * South Korean won (KRW)
 * KRW
 * South Korean won per US dollar - 1,191.61 (2003), 1,251.09 (2002), 1,290.99 (2001), 1,130.96 (2000), 1,188.82 (1999)
 * calendar year
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!| Telephones - main lines in use: !| Telephones - mobile cellular: !| Telephone system: domestic: NA international: country code - 82; fiber-optic submarine cable to China; the Russia-Korea-Japan submarine cable; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean region) !| Radio broadcast stations: !| Radios: !| Television broadcast stations: !| Televisions: !| Internet country code: !| Internet hosts: !| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): !| Internet users:
 * 22.877 million (2003)
 * 33,591,800 (2003)
 * general assessment: excellent domestic and international services
 * AM 58, FM 150, shortwave 2 (2004)
 * 47.5 million (2000)
 * 64 (additionally 119 Cable Operators; 239 Relay Cable Operators) (2004)
 * 15.9 million (1997)
 * .kr
 * 694,206 (2001)
 * 11 (2000)
 * 29.22 million (2003)
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!| Railways: standard gauge: 3,125 km 1.435-m gauge (661 km electrified) (2003) !| Highways: paved: 64,808 km (including 1,996 km of expressways) unpaved: 22,182 km (1999 est.) !| Waterways: note: most navigable only by small craft (2004) !| Pipelines: !| Ports and harbors: !| Merchant marine: registered in other countries: 442 (2004 est.) foreign-owned: Bahrain 1, China 1, Gibraltar 1, Honduras 1, Indonesia 1, Japan 3, Malaysia 1, Panama 1, Philippines 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, United Kingdom 1, United States 1 by type: bulk 97, cargo 174, chemical tanker 61, combination bulk 10, container 60, liquefied gas 19, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 73, refrigerated cargo 20, roll on/roll off 7, short-sea/passenger 2, specialized tanker 6, vehicle carrier 3 !| Airports: !| Airports - with paved runways: over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 38 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 !| Airports - with unpaved runways: 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 88 (2004 est.) !| Heliports:
 * total: 3,125 km
 * total: 86,990 km
 * 1,608 km
 * gas 1,433 km; refined products 827 km (2004)
 * Chinhae, Inch'on, Kunsan, Masan, Mokp'o, P'ohang, Pusan, Tonghae-hang, Ulsan, Yosu
 * total: 535 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,978,949 GRT/9,761,699 DWT
 * 102 (2003 est.)
 * total: 88
 * total: 91
 * 206 (2003 est.)
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!| Military branches: !| Military manpower - military age and obligation: !| Military manpower - availability: !| Military manpower - fit for military service: !| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: !| Military expenditures - dollar figure: !| Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
 * Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (Coast Guard)
 * 20-30 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 24-28 months, depending on the military branch involved; 18 years of age for voluntary military service (2004)
 * males age 15-49: 14,233,895 (2004 est.)
 * males age 15-49: 8,966,241 (2004 est.)
 * males: 341,697 (2004 est.)
 * $14.522 billion (FY03)
 * 2.7% (FY03)
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