Posted on 09/03/2013 6:50:29 PM PDT by TexGrill
SEOUL, Sept. 4 (Yonhap) -- South Korea ranked 117th in terms economic growth last year, data showed Wednesday, apparently as the protracted slump in the global economy dealt a harsh blow to the export-reliant country.
South Korea's real gross domestic product (GDP) grew 2 percent in 2012, with its ranking falling 60 notches from two years earlier, according to the World Fact Book released by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
Asia's fourth-largest economy grew 6.3 percent to rank 57th among 189 countries in 2010, but it slowed to reach 3.6 percent in 2011 to rank 102nd.
South Korea's economic-growth ranking also lost ground among 34 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development by coming in at 10th last year, down eight notches from two years earlier.
Market watchers said the country's slowing growth is attributable to the eurozone's fiscal crisis and an economic slump in China that weighed down on local exporters. China is South Korea's biggest trading partner.
"As South Korea landed into a low-growth pace and lacks market momentum, it is unlikely that the country's economy will grow at a fast pace like in previous years," said Lim Noh-joong, an analyst at I'M Investment & Securities Co.
(Excerpt) Read more at english.yonhapnews.co.kr ...
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