Taiwan’s GDP per capita has surpassed South Korea’s for the first time since 2004, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Friday.
The national GDP per capita stood at US $32,811 last year, compared with South Korea’s US$32,237, the ministry said.
The government compares and contrasts the two countries given their similar population density, economic development models and industrial structure, it said.
Photo: Lee Hui-chou, Taipei Times
Taiwan’s economy grew by 3.2 percent each year on average from 2013 to last year, also higher than South Korea’s annual average of 2.6 percent, it added.
While manufacturing value added (MVA) accounted for 29.1 percent of Taiwan’s GDP in 2013, the figure rose to 34.2 percent last year, the ministry said.
Meanwhile, South Korea’s MVA contracted from 27.8 percent to 25.6 percent over the period, it said.
Taiwan’s MVA rate has outpaced South Korea’s since 2015 and reached 32.5 percent in 2020, when South Korea’s rate was 28.7 percent, it said.
Taiwan’s industrial competitiveness was boosted by China-based Taiwanese businesses returning home during the COVID-19 pandemic, and due to US-China trade tensions over the past five years, the ministry said.
The nation’s exports grew 4.6 percent on average each year from 2013 to last year, more than South Korea’s 2.2 percent and the global average of 3 percent, it said.
The total value of South Korean exports last year amounted to 140 percent of Taiwan’s exports, narrowing from 180 percent in 2013.
Taiwan’s advantage in the semiconductor industry gave it a trade surplus of US$51.4 billion last year, while South Korea, affected by COVID-19 lockdowns in China and rising energy costs, recorded a trade deficit of US$47.8 billion, the ministry said.
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