Annual percentage change in CO₂ emissions in South Korea
South Korea: Annual percentage change in CO₂ emissions was -0.9% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
-0.9%
Change on year
up 68.0%
World rank
178th
of 215 countries
All-time high
13,309.0%
in 1946
All-time low
-99.6%
in 1945
Years of data
113
1910–2024
Annual percentage change in CO₂ emissions in South Korea, 1910–2024
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, annual percentage change in co₂ emissions in South Korea stood at -0.9%.
That represents a change of up 68.0% on the previous year and down 13.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual percentage change in co₂ emissions in South Korea peaked at 13,309.0% in 1946 and was at its lowest, -99.6%, in 1945.
That places South Korea 178th out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Annual percentage change in CO₂ emissions in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1910 | 25.6% | — |
| 1911 | 18.5% | -27.6% |
| 1912 | 25.0% | +34.9% |
| 1913 | 16.3% | -35.0% |
| 1914 | 43.0% | +164.7% |
| 1915 | 24.8% | -42.3% |
| 1916 | -16.9% | -168.0% |
| 1919 | 18.4% | -209.0% |
| 1920 | 29.8% | +62.2% |
| 1921 | 7.7% | -74.3% |
| 1922 | 2.2% | -70.9% |
| 1923 | 19.6% | +779.7% |
| 1924 | 5.1% | -74.0% |
| 1925 | 59.5% | +1069.4% |
| 1926 | 7.4% | -87.6% |
| 1927 | 3.6% | -50.7% |
| 1928 | 15.2% | +318.2% |
| 1929 | 14.9% | -2.1% |
| 1930 | -5.7% | -138.6% |
| 1931 | 5.9% | -203.4% |
| 1932 | 17.8% | +200.6% |
| 1933 | 17.9% | +0.3% |
| 1934 | 33.0% | +84.3% |
| 1935 | 17.6% | -46.6% |
| 1936 | 17.4% | -1.4% |
| 1937 | 7.0% | -59.7% |
| 1938 | 33.8% | +383.8% |
| 1939 | 30.5% | -9.8% |
| 1940 | 28.6% | -6.2% |
| 1941 | 11.5% | -59.8% |
| 1942 | 10.4% | -9.7% |
| 1943 | -3.1% | -129.7% |
| 1944 | 5.7% | -282.9% |
| 1945 | -99.6% | -1862.1% |
| 1946 | 13,309.0% | -13457.0% |
| 1947 | 84.2% | -99.4% |
| 1948 | 86.1% | +2.3% |
| 1949 | 30.3% | -64.9% |
| 1950 | 0.3% | -98.9% |
| 1951 | 33.9% | +9925.4% |
| 1952 | 18.4% | -45.7% |
| 1953 | 35.6% | +93.1% |
| 1954 | 9.9% | -72.1% |
| 1955 | 24.9% | +151.5% |
| 1956 | 17.2% | -30.9% |
| 1957 | 8.7% | -49.3% |
| 1958 | 9.7% | +10.8% |
| 1959 | 24.6% | +154.0% |
| 1960 | 11.8% | -52.2% |
| 1961 | 15.2% | +29.5% |
| 1962 | 19.5% | +27.9% |
| 1963 | 22.1% | +13.7% |
| 1964 | 5.3% | -76.2% |
| 1965 | 12.5% | +137.7% |
| 1966 | 20.0% | +59.8% |
| 1967 | 17.1% | -14.6% |
| 1968 | 5.9% | -65.3% |
| 1969 | 14.2% | +138.8% |
| 1970 | 26.5% | +86.9% |
| 1971 | 9.0% | -66.1% |
| 1972 | 2.9% | -67.4% |
| 1973 | 21.1% | +621.7% |
| 1974 | 3.5% | -83.3% |
| 1975 | 8.1% | +129.3% |
| 1976 | 14.0% | +73.1% |
| 1977 | 13.3% | -5.3% |
| 1978 | 7.3% | -45.3% |
| 1979 | 17.5% | +140.4% |
| 1980 | 1.2% | -92.9% |
| 1981 | 3.8% | +203.2% |
| 1982 | 0.9% | -77.3% |
| 1983 | 5.9% | +594.6% |
| 1984 | 7.8% | +30.7% |
| 1985 | 5.0% | -35.4% |
| 1986 | 4.5% | -10.9% |
| 1987 | 5.1% | +15.0% |
| 1988 | 13.8% | +168.7% |
| 1989 | 6.0% | -56.9% |
| 1990 | 12.1% | +102.9% |
| 1991 | 10.1% | -16.8% |
| 1992 | 8.8% | -12.6% |
| 1993 | 10.1% | +14.9% |
| 1994 | 7.7% | -23.4% |
| 1995 | 7.9% | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 9.7% | +23.7% |
| 1997 | 5.7% | -41.5% |
| 1998 | -15.0% | -364.2% |
| 1999 | 8.6% | -157.1% |
| 2000 | 7.2% | -16.5% |
| 2001 | 3.6% | -50.4% |
| 2002 | 4.5% | +26.1% |
| 2003 | 1.9% | -57.2% |
| 2004 | 1.3% | -33.8% |
| 2005 | 1.5% | +16.7% |
| 2006 | 1.0% | -35.3% |
| 2007 | 3.6% | +277.0% |
| 2008 | 2.1% | -42.1% |
| 2009 | 1.0% | -53.7% |
| 2010 | 10.5% | +982.9% |
| 2011 | 4.9% | -53.4% |
| 2012 | 0.7% | -85.3% |
| 2013 | 1.1% | +46.4% |
| 2014 | -0.8% | -177.7% |
| 2015 | 0.8% | -193.0% |
| 2016 | 0.6% | -22.9% |
| 2017 | 2.6% | +342.3% |
| 2018 | 2.4% | -8.4% |
| 2019 | -3.6% | -250.4% |
| 2020 | -7.5% | +108.9% |
| 2021 | 3.1% | -141.1% |
| 2022 | -1.5% | -148.4% |
| 2023 | -2.9% | +95.3% |
| 2024 | -0.9% | -68.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's -0.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 1.5%. (74 countries reporting)
- South Korea's -0.9% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 4.6%. (34 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual percentage change in CO₂ emissions in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | +13457.0% | -99.6% | 13,309.0% |
| 1951 | +9925.4% | 0.3% | 33.9% |
| 1945 | -1862.1% | 5.7% | -99.6% |
| 1925 | +1069.4% | 5.1% | 59.5% |
| 2010 | +982.9% | 1.0% | 10.5% |
| 1923 | +779.7% | 2.2% | 19.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 19.3% | -16.9% | 43.0% | 8 |
| 1920s | 16.5% | 2.2% | 59.5% | 10 |
| 1930s | 17.5% | -5.7% | 33.8% | 10 |
| 1940s | 1,346.3% | -99.6% | 13,309.0% | 10 |
| 1950s | 18.3% | 0.3% | 35.6% | 10 |
| 1960s | 14.4% | 5.3% | 22.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | 12.3% | 2.9% | 26.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.4% | 0.9% | 13.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.6% | -15.0% | 12.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.8% | 1.0% | 7.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.9% | -3.6% | 10.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | -2.0% | -7.5% | 3.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More climate change data for South Korea
- Spring temperature anomalies 1.1 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.7164 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -0.8996 °C (2026)
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.2% (2100)
- Population, total, annual growth rate -0.1285 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, total, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, annual growth rate -0.1214 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, per capita 0.8117 units per person (2025)
- Precipitation anomalies, annual growth rate -78.08 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual percentage change in co₂ emissions in South Korea?
- Annual percentage change in co₂ emissions in South Korea was -0.9% in 2024, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual percentage change in co₂ emissions recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 13,309.0% in 1946.
- What is the lowest annual percentage change in co₂ emissions recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was -99.6% in 1945.
- How does South Korea rank for annual percentage change in co₂ emissions?
- South Korea ranks 178th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is annual percentage change in co₂ emissions rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual percentage change in CO₂ emissions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 113 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual percentage growth in total emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), excluding land-use change.