Korea, Rep.: Prosperity gap (average shortfall from a prosperity standard of $28/day)

Key figures

Over five years it is down 22.22% from 0.9 in 2016 (4.9% a year on average, compounded). Since 2006 it is down 41.67% from 1.2 in 2006 (3.53% a year on average, compounded). The World Bank has no value for 5 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

What the numbers say

From 2012 to 2021 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.05 a year. A straight line explains 96% of the movement over 8 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Korea, Rep. in the 2021 ranking

• Kazakhstan — 4th of 8: 2.4
• Malaysia — 5th of 8: 1.2
• United Kingdom — 6th of 8: 0.9
• Netherlands — 8th of 8: 0.5

What this measures

The average shortfall from a prosperity standard of $28 per day (adjusted for differences in purchasing power parity across countries). It is measured as the average factor by which incomes fall short of $28.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a population-weighted average.

All 11 values

Prosperity gap (average shortfall from a prosperity standard of $28/day) in nearby economies

• Australia — 1.2 (2020)
• China — 2.4 (2022)
• Indonesia — 4.5 (2025)
• Japan — 1.2 (2020)
• Malaysia — 1.2 (2021)
• Mongolia — 2.7 (2022)
• Philippines — 4.4 (2023)
• Thailand — 2 (2024)
• Viet Nam

More poverty data for Korea, Rep.

• Income share held by second 20% — 12.4% (2021)
• Income share held by third 20% — 16.9% (2021)
• Income share held by fourth 20% — 23.1% (2021)
• Income share held by highest 20% — 40.3% (2021)
• Income share held by highest 10% — 25% (2021)
• Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%) — 12.6% (2021)
• Income share held by lowest 10% — 2.9% (2021)
• Income share held by lowest 20% — 7.4% (2021)
• Poverty headcount ratio at $3.00 a day (2021 PPP) (% of population) — 0.1% (2021)
• Poverty gap at $3.00 a day (2021 PPP) (%)

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Questions people ask

What is Korea, Rep.'s prosperity gap (average shortfall from a prosperity standard of $28/day)?

0.7 in 2021, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2006?

It is down 41.67% from 1.2 in 2006 (3.53% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 1.2 in 2006 and the lowest 0.7 in 2019.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are mostly from the Luxembourg Income Study database..

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SI.SPR.PGAP, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are mostly from the Luxembourg Income Study database. Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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