April 26, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Foreign ownership of South Korean land increased in the first half of this year, the government said on Dec. 23.

The amount of land owned by foreign entities came to 232.23 million square meters as of end-June, up 1.7 percent from 228.27 million square meters tallied at end-2015, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The amount accounted for 0.2 percent of the country’s total area, with the value of the land estimated at 32.26 trillion won (US$26.89 billion).

South Korean expatriates held 54.1 percent of the total land owned by foreign entities, slightly down from 54.5 percent six months earlier, the ministry said in a press release.

Joint ventures accounted for 32.3 percent of the total, followed by foreign companies and foreign individuals with 8.4 percent and 5 percent, respectively.

By nationality, individuals or companies from the United States owned 118.38 million square meters of land, accounting for 51 percent of the total.

Europeans came next with 9.2 percent of the total, followed by Japanese and Chinese entities with 8.1 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)