On the 26th, an outlook said that by 2030 Korea's pension expenditure will increase at the fastest pace among the Group of 20 (G20) advanced economies.
According to the April issue of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Fiscal Monitor report released that day, Korea's pension expenditure is expected to rise by the equivalent of 0.7% of gross domestic product (GDP) between 2025 and 2030.
This is the steepest growth rate among G20 advanced economies. Over the same period, Japan's pension expenditure growth rate is 0.2%. Italy (0.6%), the United States (0.5%), Canada (0.4%), Germany (0.3%), the United Kingdom (0%), and Australia (-0.1%) also all had lower growth rates than Korea.
Among the 36 countries for which the IMF compiled changes in pension expenditure relative to GDP, Korea had the third-highest growth rate. Andorra (1.5%) ranked first, and Hong Kong (0.9%) was second. Lithuania, Portugal, and New Zealand had the same growth rate as Korea.
The net present value of Korea's change in pension expenditure from 2025 to 2050 was projected at 41.4% of GDP. This is the highest level among G20 advanced economies. This indicator converts into present value the difference between pension expenditure expected in 2050 and pension expenditure in 2025. In other words, Korea's pension expenditure, in present value terms, increases by 41.4% of GDP. Major countries including Japan (31.3%), the United States (13.4%), Italy (13.3%), Germany (10%), Canada (9.4%), the United Kingdom (6.8%), France (-2.1%), and Australia (-2.7%) were all lower than Korea.
In addition, Korea's health care expenditure in 2030 was observed to increase by 0.9% of GDP from 2025. This is the second-highest level among G20 advanced economies after the United States (2.3%). The net present value of the change in health care expenditure from 2025 to 2050 was also the second highest for Korea (55.5%) after the United States (100.9%).