Korea's Economy
From the Issue
Korea's Economy Volume 30About Korea's Economy
Korea’s Economy is KEI’s annual journal publication dedicated to the key issues of the day for the Korean economy. Articles in Korea’s Economy are designed to give the casual, but informed reader insight into issues related to Korea’s markets and financial institutions, economic reform, economic relations with the wider world, and North Korea. It is published jointly each year with the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy.
The Korean economy has faced several crises, such as the ending of the rapid economic growth era in the 21st century, continued stagnation of per capita GDP growth since 2007 where its value exceeded $20,000 for the first time, an expected decrease in economic growth rate from 3.5 percent in 2010 to 2.1 percent in 2020, the employment rate staying around 59 percent since 2007, and a decrease in the coefficient of employment in all industries from 10.1 in 2005 to 7.9 in 2011. In addition, a rapidly aging population, the world’s lowest birth rate, and the absence of next-generation growth engine technology is darkening the economic outlook. The Park Geun-hye administration, since its inauguration in 2013, suggested the “job-centered creative economy” as a core philosophy of its state affairs to solve the problems stated above. Even if it is difficult to analyze the concrete results of the creative economy, this paper intends to examine the evolution of the creative economy policy from its advent to the present to review its problems and to propose its future direction.