S. Korea global leader in manufacturing, lags in quality of life: data

SEOUL, Oct. 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korea ranks among global leaders in such areas as manufacturing, research and development (R&D) and financial wealth, but is middle of the pack in terms of quality of life and labor conditions, a report by an international traders association showed Sunday.

The findings based on statistical data gathered from around 170 sources, covering such areas as the economy, trade and social development, indicated that the country's strength lay in manufacturing, the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said.

As of last year, South Korea was the No. 1 manufacturer of mobile phones in the world, the second-largest producer of computer chips and ships, and ranked fifth and sixth, respectively, in automobile and steel output.

KITA's annual report showed there were 17 South Korean companies on the Fortune 500 list, which places the country in seventh place in the world. Of its largest companies, the brand value of Samsung stood at eighth place overall, with Hyundai coming in at 43rd place.

Samsung Electronics Co. is the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phones in the world, and No. 2 in terms of computer chips, while Hyundai Motor Group is the world's fifth-largest automotive conglomerate.

In the R&D field, the country as a whole ranked sixth on the world stage and fifth in terms of corporate investment into research in 2012. South Korea ranked fourth in the world in the number of patents secured by its people.

On the financial front, South Korea had the world's eighth-largest foreign reserves and ranked 10th in terms of stock market transactions.

Seoul's government was the most-wired in the world in 2012, while the country stood in fifth place in the sheer number of people with access to highspeed Internet.

Asia's fourth-largest economy, moreover, ranked fifth in the volume of air cargo its airports handled two years ago and third in terms of international conventions as of last year.

In the area of trade, South Korea in 2013 was the seventh-largest exporter in the world, stood ninth in overall trade volume and had the 13th-largest trade surplus among countries assessed.

On the other hand, the country ranked 41st for quality of life, while its per capita annual working hours stood at 2,163, placing it second after Mexico. The United States ranked 19th in quality of life with Japan coming in at 20th.

The country stood at 25th place for participation of women in the workforce, while its birthrate ranked 168th among 171 countries.

The KITA report showed that the country's heavy reliance on manufacturing made it the eighth-largest consumer of crude oil, making it vulnerable to any fluctuations in international energy prices.

The trade agency said South Korea's rapid and compressed growth has resulted in uneven development, with labor standards and quality of life remaining on par with middle-income countries.

"In certain areas, there is quite a large gap with advanced industrialized economies that must be tackled if the country is to get ahead," KITA said,

yonngong@yna.co.kr
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