The economic gap between South and North Korea remained wide in 2016 as the South Korean economy, Asia's fourth largest, expanded at a much faster clip, a US intelligence report said Monday.
In terms of purchasing power, South Korea's gross domestic product came to$1.93 trillion last year, 48 times larger than the North's $40 billion, according to the CIA's World Factbook.
South Korea's GDP ranked 14th worldwide, with North Korea's ranking standing at 115th. China topped the list with $21.27 trillion, trailed by the European Union with $19.18 trillion and the United States with $18.56 trillion.
The South Korean economy grew 2.7 percent last year from a year earlier, while North Korea's economy expanded a mere 1 percent.
Comparable figures were 6.6 percent for China, 1.6 percent for the United States and 0.5 percent for Japan.
South Korea's life expectancy was 82.4 years last year, the 12th longest in the world, with the number coming to 70.4 years for North Korea.
The death rate for South Korea amounted to 5.8 per 1,000 people, with the comparable figure reaching 9.3 for the communist nation.
Monaco had the longest life expectancy of 89.5 years, with Singapore and Japan tied for second with 85 years.
South Korea's population stood at 50.92 million, the 28th largest in the world, compared with the Stalinist country's 25.12.
South Korea's public debt accounted for 46.1 percent of the GDP last year, the 99th highest in the world, with Japan posting the biggest ratio of 234.7 percent, according to the World Factbook. (Yonhap)
