Korea Ranks 54th, with Per Capita GNI of $9,460

Korea has the world’s 13th largest economy but the nation ranked 54th in the world in terms of per-capita Gross National Income (GNI).

According to the 2003 World Development Indicators Publication released by the World Bank, Korea recorded a GNI of $447.6 billion and a per-capita GNI of $9,460 in 2001.

The nation ranked 13th and 54th respectively in the world, which are the same as the rankings in 2000.

Korea`s per-capita GNI is at the level of countries such as Slovenia ($9,760, 52th), Saudi Arabia ($8,460, 57th). However, it ranked quite below its Asian rival nations including Hong Kong ($25,330, 13th) and Singapore ($21,500, 26th).

In terms of GNI per capita, Luxembourg topped the list with a per capita GNI of $41,770, followed by Liechtenstein ($40,000), Switzerland ($38,330), Norway ($35,630), and Japan ($35,610). The United States took 7th place with a per capita GNI of $34,280.

In terms of GNI, the U.S. took first place with a GNI of $9,780.8 billion, followed by Japan ($4,523.3 billion), Germany ($1,939.6 billion) and China ($1,131.2 billion).

However, based on the Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) exchange rate, the U.S. ranked 1st; China took second place with $5,027 billion; Japan ranked 3rd with $3,246 billion; and India took the 4th place with $2,913 billion.

The PPP foreign exchange rate, based on the assumption that the ratio between domestic and foreign price levels should equalize the equilibrium exchange rate between domestic and foreign currencies, represents a nation`s currency`s real purchasing power. In this term, Korea`s GNI and per capita GNI are estimated at $713 billion (14th) and $15,060 (54th) respectively.

Kwu-Jin Lim mhjh22@donga.com