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South Korea flag South Korea Business Environment

Trade, commerce, and economic integration indicators

Overview

Business environment indicators for South Korea, covering trade, commerce, foreign direct investment, corruption perceptions, and economic integration from the World Bank, OECD, IMF, and Transparency International.

Key Indicators

Firms visited or required meetings with tax officials (% of firms)
0.9
2024 · Percentage of firms that were visited or inspected by tax officials or were required to meet with them over the last year.
Average time to clear exports through customs (days)
15.4
2024 · Average number of days to clear direct exports through customs.
Time to obtain an electrical connection (days)
4.8
2024 · Average wait, in days, experienced to obtain electrical connection from the day this establishment applied for it to the day it received the service.
Domestic credit to private sector by banks (% of GDP)
176.1
2023 · Domestic credit to private sector by banks refers to financial resources provided to the private sector by other depository corporations (deposit taking corporations except central banks), such as through loans, purchases of nonequity securities, and trade credits and other accounts receivable, that establish a claim for repayment. For some countries these claims include credit to public enterprises. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.
New business density (new registrations per 1,000 people ages 15-64)
3.1
2022 · The number of newly registered firms with limited liability per 1,000 working-age people (ages 15-64) per calendar year.
Corruption Perceptions Index
64.0 /100
2024 · Transparency International CPI score (0-100, higher = less corrupt)

Data Explorer

Merchandise exports (current US$)
683609000000
2024 · World Bank
Insurance and financial services (% of service exports, BoP)
4.64820043079408
2024 · World Bank
Ores and metals exports (% of merchandise exports)
2.40115103484146
2024 · World Bank
Commercial service imports (current US$)
161441300000
2024 · World Bank
Ores and metals imports (% of merchandise imports)
6.67748458131231
2024 · World Bank
Merchandise imports (current US$)
631767000000
2024 · World Bank
Firms using banks to finance investment (% of firms)
46.36694717
2024 · World Bank
Insurance and financial services (% of service imports, BoP)
3.56406193995486
2024 · World Bank
Number of visits or required meetings with tax officials (average for affected firms)
2.178367376
2024 · World Bank
Informal payments to public officials (% of firms)
1.441454887
2024 · World Bank
Computer, communications and other services (% of commercial service imports)
55.9397750142002
2024 · World Bank
Bribery incidence (% of firms experiencing at least one bribe payment request)
0.0177613664
2024 · World Bank
Time spent dealing with the requirements of government regulations (% of senior management time)
0.2265686989
2024 · World Bank
Firms visited or required meetings with tax officials (% of firms)
0.9246596694
2024 · World Bank
Manufactures imports (% of merchandise imports)
60.1073364940026
2024 · World Bank
Agricultural raw materials imports (% of merchandise imports)
0.896266125370267
2024 · World Bank
Firms expected to give gifts in meetings with tax officials (% of firms)
0.1748153865
2024 · World Bank
Firms using banks to finance working capital (% of firms)
47.86048889
2024 · World Bank
Import unit value index (2015 = 100)
115.5
2024 · World Bank
Fuel imports (% of merchandise imports)
25.6591897286102
2024 · World Bank

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources: World Bank · Last updated: 2025

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