S. Korea's per-capita GNI to exceed US$20,000 this year

SEOUL, Jan. 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's per-capita gross national income (GNI)
is expected to exceed US$20,000 this year, helped by an economic recovery and the
Korean currency's strength, government officials said Thursday.
The nation's per-capita GNI, or U.S. dollar-based average income of a country's
people, was estimated at $17,000 last year, compared with $19,231 in 2008, said
the officials at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.
Last year's per-capita GNI estimate was based on assumptions that the economy
grew 0.2 percent in 2009 and the U.S. dollar averaged at 1,276 won.
The government expected the economy to expand 5 percent this year, thanks to a
recovery in the global economy.
"Given economic conditions at home and abroad, there should be no big hurdle to
obtaining 5 percent growth, helping per-capita GNI rise above $20,000 this year,"
said a ministry official.
(END)