A Quick Guide to South Korea’s Maritime Industry

The maritime industry is an important economic pillar that contributes a significant amount to the GDP. By Sunny Um, South Korea correspondent, Maritime Fairtrade

Globally, South Korea is leading in many sectors including being the world’s top shipbuilding country. Busan Port, the largest domestically, is the top six container port in the world.

The South Korean government estimated that the maritime industry accounted for 10 percent of the country’s GDP (approximately US$1.6 trillion) in 2020. This amount includes shipbuilding, shipping and port, and marine biotechnology, among others.

In 2020, for the third year in a row, South Korea has retained the title of the top country in the world with the biggest volume of shipbuilding orders.

When it comes to fisheries, a report published by Statistics Korea showed that 51,000 households are working in fisheries in 2019, which is about 2.9 percent of all households in South Korea.

The size of seafood consumption is bigger than what is produced in the country. Its domestic consumption was estimated as 5.23 million metric tons in 2019, while domestic production was just over 3.86 metric tons in the same year.

This makes South Korea one of the biggest importers of seafood, importing almost…