Geography of South Korea

Map of South Korea

South Korea is located in East

Asia, on the southern half of the

Korean Peninsula jutting out

from the far east of the Asian

landmass. The only country

with a land border to South

Korea is North Korea, lying to

the north with 238 kilometres

(148 mi) of border running

along the Korean Demilitarized

Zone. South Korea is mostly surrounded by water and has 2,413 kilometres (1,499 mi) of

coastline along three seas; to the west is the Yellow Sea (West Sea), to the south is the

East China Sea, and to the east is the Sea of Japan (East Sea). Geographically, South

Korea's land mass is approximately 100,032 square kilometres (38,623 sq mi).[1] 290

square kilometres (110 sq mi) of South Korea are occupied by water. The approximate

coordinates are 37° North, 127° 30 East.

Land area and borders

Further information: Korean Peninsula

continental landmass. The Japanese islands of Honshū and Kyūshū are located some 200

km (124 mi) to the southeast across the Korea Strait; the Shandong Peninsula of China

lies 190 kilometers to the west. The west coast of the peninsula is bordered by the Korea

Bay to the north and the Yellow Sea and Korea Strait to the south; the east coast is

bordered by the Sea of Japan. The 8,640-kilometer coastline is highly indented. Some

3,579 islands lie adjacent to the peninsula. Most of them are found along the south and

west coasts.

The line between the two Korean states was the thirty-eighth parallel of latitude.

After the Korean War, the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) formed the boundary

between the two. The DMZ is a heavily guarded, 4,000-meter-wide strip of land that runs

along the demarcation line established by the Korean Armistice Agreement from the east

to the west coasts for a distance of 241 kilometers (238 kilometers of that line from the

land boundary with North Korea).

The total land area of the peninsula, including the islands, is 223,170 square

kilometers. Some 44.8 percent (100 210 square kilometers) of this total, excluding the

area within the DMZ, constitutes the territory of the Republic of Korea. The combined

territories of North Korea and South Korea are about the same size as the U.S. state of

Minnesota. South Korea alone is about the size of Portugal or Hungary.

The largest island, Jeju-do, lies off the southwest corner of the peninsula and has a

land area of 1,825 square kilometers. Other important islands include Ulleung and

Liancourt Rocks in the Sea of Japan and Ganghwa Island at the mouth of the Han River.

Although the eastern coastline of South Korea is generally unindented, the southern and
western coasts are jagged and irregular. The difference is caused by the fact that the

eastern coast is gradually rising, while the southern and western coasts are subsiding.

South Korea has the strongest entrepreneurship in Asia

NEW DELHI (DataLEADS/ANN) - South Korea leads the region in

entrepreneurship, ahead of Singapore, Japan and China

South Korea tops the region in entrepreneurship environment with a score of 54%,

according to the recently released Global Entrepreneurship Index.

The country jumped three spaces up from the last year. The tech giant has been

ahead of producing new technologies and introducing new products to customers. It is

closely followed by Singapore and Japan with a score of 53% and 52%respectively.

China is ranked fourth in the region with a score of 41%. China’s physical infrastructure

contributes to the country’s score followed by its market dynamics. It is followed by

Brunei and Malaysia that have as score of 34% and 33% respectively.

India is ranked seventh in the region with a score of 28%.

Despite various initiatives of the current government like “Make in India” the

country is far behind as compared to other established regional leaders.

According to the report the country’s strong areas are in product and process innovation,

opportunity start-up, and robust competition in the marketplace. It is followed by

Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam.

Sri Lanka is ranked eleventh in the region. The country performed poorly in crucial

indicators such as process innovation and technology absorption capacity, while

innovation. It is followed by Indonesia, Laos and Cambodia.

Pakistan, Myanmar and Bangladesh are ranked lowest in the region with a score of 16%,

14% and 12% respectively.

According to the report, the region’s lowest scores on average are in the area of Risk

Acceptance.

"If countries in the region improve their overall risk profile as well as the

populations’ attitudes towards taking risks, it is likely that the entrepreneurship

ecosystems in the Asia-Pacific region will gain ground," reads the report

Employment and Unemployment rate of South Korea

from 60.90% in November 2018. South Korea's employment rate has an average of

59.76% from 1999 until 2018. South Korea highest employment rate was in July 2017

61.60% and the lowest rate was in February 2001

South Korea unemployment rate is still the same at 3.8% from November 2018 to

December 2018. It has an average of 3.65% unemployment rate from year 1999 to 2018.
 South Korea manufacturers to boost capital investment in 2017 vs 2016: central

bank survey

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean manufacturers are expected to spend more on

capital investment this year than they did last year, although those expenditures will be

conservative and mostly geared towards maintaining facilities than expansion, a central

bank survey showed on Monday.

The Bank of Korea (BOK) said a snap survey of 271 manufacturers nationwide

showed 66.7 percent of respondents were planning to expand facilities investment this

year versus the 33.9 percent who said their investments would decline in 2017.

The survey was part of a quarterly central bank report on the regional economy.

On an annual basis, capex declined for three consecutive quarters in 2016 as

companies balked at boosting investment in the face of global and local uncertainties. In

the fourth quarter, capital investment managed a 1.5 percent gain over a year earlier.

Revised fourth-quarter gross domestic product growth data will be announced on

Tuesday.

This year, companies in sectors such as information technology (IT), petrochemicals,

oil refining and car production were expected to boost investment, the central bank

survey showed.

Capital investment across the board was expected to be conservative, with

companies focusing on maintenance, repairs and boosting the efficiency of existing

facilities.
 The BOK said protectionist policies were gaining traction globally. Combined with

uncertainty stemming from domestic and foreign conditions, these policies could hamper

investment.

The central bank added that exports were expected to continue rising in coming

months, with shipments of semiconductors, displays and smartphones likely to increase.