1996 Edition

Description

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

Location

37 00 N, 127 30 E -- Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea, south of North Korea Flag ----

Area

comparative area

slightly larger than Indiana

land area

98,190 sq km

total area

98,480 sq km

Climate

temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter

Coastline

2,413 km

Environment

current issues

air pollution in large cities; water pollution from the discharge of sewage and industrial effluents; drift net fishing

international agreements

party to - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Law of the Sea

natural hazards

occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; earthquakes in southwest

Geographic coordinates

37 00 N, 127 30 E

International disputes

Demarcation Line with North Korea; Liancourt Rocks claimed by Japan

Irrigated land

13,530 sq km (1989)

Land boundaries

border country

North Korea 238 km

total

238 km

Land use

arable land

21%

forest and woodland

67%

meadows and pastures

1%

other

10%

permanent crops

1%

Location

Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea, south of North Korea

Map references

Asia

Maritime claims

continental shelf

not specified

territorial sea

12 nm; 3 nm in the Korea Strait

Natural resources

coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower

Terrain

mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south

highest point

Halla-san 1,950 m

lowest point

Sea of Japan 0 m

Age structure

0-14 years: 23% (male 5,531,032; female 4,962,915) 15-64 years: 71% (male 16,374,678; female 15,910,846) 65 years and over: 6% (male 1,014,649; female 1,688,171) (July 1996 est.)

Birth rate

16.24 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate

5.66 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Ethnic divisions

homogeneous (except for about 20,000 Chinese)

Infant mortality rate

8.2 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Languages

Korean, English widely taught in high school

Life expectancy at birth

female

77.39 years (1996 est.)

male

69.65 years

total population

73.26 years

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)

female

96.7%

male

99.3%

total population

98%

Nationality

adjective

Korean

noun

Korean(s)

Net migration rate

-0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Population

45,482,291 (July 1996 est.)

Population growth rate

1.02% (1996 est.)

Religions

Christianity 48.6%, Buddhism 47.4%, Confucianism 3%, pervasive folk religion (shamanism), Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way) 0.2%

Sex ratio

all ages

1.02 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

at birth

1.14 male(s)/female

under 15 years

1.11 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female

Total fertility rate

1.77 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Administrative divisions

9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 6 special cities* (gwangyoksi, singular and plural); Cheju-do, Cholla-bukto, Cholla-namdo, Ch'ungch'ong-bukto, Ch'ungch'ong-namdo, Inch'on-gwangyoksi*, Kangwon-do, Kwangju-gwangyoksi*, Kyonggi-do, Kyongsang-bukto, Kyongsang-namdo, Pusan-gwangyoksi*, Soul-t'ukpyolsi*, Taegu-gwangyoksi*, Taejon-gwangyoksi*

Capital

Seoul

Constitution

25 February 1988

Data code

KS

Diplomatic representation in US

chancery

2450 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador PAK Kun-u

consulate(s) general

Agana (Guam), Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle

telephone

[1] (202) 939-5600, 524-9273

Executive branch

cabinet

State Council was appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation

chief of state

President KIM Yong-sam (since 25 February 1993) was elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 18 December 1992 (next to be held NA December 1997); results - KIM Yong-sam (DLP) 41.9%, KIM Tae-chung (DP) 33.8%, CHONG Chu-yong (UPP) 16.3%, other 8%

head of government

Prime Minister YI Su-song (since 15 December 1995) was appointed by the president with the consent of the National Assembly; Deputy Prime Ministers NA Ung-pae (since 20 December 1995) and KWON O-ki (since 20 December 1995) were appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation

FAX

[82] (2) 738-8845

consulate(s)

Pusan

Flag

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

Independence

15 August 1948

International organization participation

AfDB, APEC, AsDB, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, OAS (observer), OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNU, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court, justices are appointed by the president subject to the consent of the National Assembly

Legal system

combines elements of continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought

Legislative branch

unicameral

Name of country

abbreviation

ROK

conventional long form

Republic of Korea

conventional short form

South Korea

local long form

Taehan-min'guk

local short form

none

note

the South Koreans generally use the term "Hanguk" to refer to their country

National Assembly (Kukhoe)

members elected for four-year terms; elections last held 11 April 1996 (next to be held NA 2000); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (299 total) NKP 139, NCNP 79, ULD 50, DP 15, independents 16

National holiday

Independence Day, 15 August (1948)

Other political or pressure groups

Korean National Council of Churches; National Democratic Alliance of Korea; National Federation of Student Associations; National Federation of Farmers' Associations; National Council of Labor Unions; Federation of Korean Trade Unions; Korean Veterans' Association; Federation of Korean Industries; Korean Traders Association

Political parties and leaders

majority party

New Korea Party (NKP), KIM Yong-sam, president

opposition

United Liberal Democratic Party (ULD), KIM Chong-p'il, president; Democratic Party (DP), KIM Won-ki, co-chairman and CHANG Ul-pyong, co-chairman; National Congress for New Politics (NCNP), KIM Tae-chung, president

Suffrage

20 years of age; universal

Type of government

republic

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission

Ambassador James T. LANEY

embassy

82 Sejong-Ro, Chongro-ku, Seoul

mailing address

American Embassy, Unit 15550, APO AP 96205-0001

telephone

[82] (2) 397-4114

Agriculture

rice, root crops, barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish catch of 2.9 million metric tons, seventh largest in world

Budget

expenditures

$67 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1995 est.)

revenues

$69 billion

Currency

1 South Korean won (W) = 100 chun (theoretical)

Economic aid

$NA

Economic overview

As one of the Four Dragons of East Asia, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of growth. Three decades ago its GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. Today its GDP per capita is nine times India's, 14 times North Korea's, and already up with the lesser economies of the European Union. This success has been achieved by a unique combination of authoritarian government guidance of what is at bottom an essentially entrepreneurial process. The government has sponsored large-scale adoption of technology and management from Japan and other modern nations; has successfully pushed the development of export industries while encouraging the import of machinery and materials at the expense of consumer goods; and has pushed its labor force to a work effort seldom matched anywhere even in wartime. Real GDP grew by an average 10% in 1986-91, then paused to a "mere" 5% in 1992-93, only to move back up to 8% in 1994 and 9% in 1995. With a much higher standard of living and with a considerable easing of authoritarian controls, the work pace has softened. Growth rates will probably slow down over the medium term because of the exhaustion of former growth opportunities and the need to deal with pollution and the other problems of success.

Electricity

capacity

28,750,000 kW

consumption per capita

2,899 kWh (1994)

production

165 billion kWh

Exchange rates

South Korean won (W) per US$1 - 787.27 (January 1996), 771.27 (1995), 803.45 (1994), 802.67 (1993), 780.65 (1992), 733.35 (1991)

Exports

$125.4 billion (f.o.b., 1995)

commodities

electronic and electrical equipment, machinery, steel, automobiles, ships; textiles, clothing, footwear; fish

partners

US 19%, Japan 14%, EU 13%

External debt

$77 billion (1995 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $590.7 billion (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector

agriculture

8%

industry

45%

services

47% (1991 est.)

GDP per capita

$13,000 (1995 est.)

GDP real growth rate

9% (1995)

Imports

$135.1 billion (c.i.f., 1995)

commodities

machinery, electronics and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, textiles, organic chemicals, grains

partners

Japan 24%, US 22%, EU 13%

Industrial production growth rate

12.2% (1995 est.)

Industries

electronics, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel, textiles, clothing, footwear, food processing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

4.3% (1995 est.)

Labor force

20 million

by occupation

services and other 52%, mining and manufacturing 27%, agriculture, fishing, forestry 21% (1991)

Unemployment rate

2% (1995 est.)

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (Coast Guard)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $17.4 billion, 3.3% of GNP (1996)

Manpower availability

males age 15-49

13,602,115

males fit for military service

8,706,545

males reach military age (18) annually

398,322 (1996 est.)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 79, FM 46, shortwave 0

Radios

42 million (1993 est.)

Telephone system

excellent domestic and international services

domestic

NA

international

fiber-optic submarine cable to China; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean Region)

Telephones

16.6 million (1993)

Television broadcast stations

256 (57 of which are 1 kW or greater) (1987 est.)

Televisions

9.3 million (1992 est.) Defense

Airports

total

105

with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m

13

with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m

20

with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m

14

with paved runways over 3 047 m

1

with paved runways under 914 m

54

with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m

3 (1995 est.)

Heliports

201 (1995 est.)

Highways

paved

51,918 km (including 1,550 km of expressways)

total

61,296 km

unpaved

9,378 km (1993)

Merchant marine

note

South Korea owns an additional 231 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 10,128,506 DWT operating under the registries of Panama, Liberia, Cyprus, Malta, The Bahamas, and Thailand (1995 est.)

ships by type

bulk 124, cargo 122, chemical tanker 21, combination bulk 3, combination ore/oil 1, container 59, liquefied gas tanker 12, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 61, refrigerated cargo 13, short-sea passenger 1, vehicle carrier 10

total

428 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,076,981 GRT/9,822,089 DWT

Pipelines

petroleum products 455 km

Ports

Chinhae, Inch'on, Kunsan, Masan, Mokp'o, Pohang, Pusan, Ulsan, Yosu

Railways

narrow gauge

20 km 0.762-m gauge

standard gauge

3,081 km 1.435-m gauge (560 km electrified)

total

3,101 km

Waterways

1,609 km; use restricted to small native craft