South Korea has plunged into recession, the steepest one in more than two decades. The country's gross domestic product decreased by a record 3.3% in the second quarter of this year. This is the sharpest contraction since 1998 when the Korean economy experienced a deep economic crisis.

Exports of goods and services also dropped significantly. The indicator tumbled by 16.6%, marking the worst reading since 1963. Moreover, this was the second straight month of decline in exports.

South Korea's imports slumped by 7.4%. At the same time, consumer spending increased by 1.4% amid increased costs for cars and household appliances.

The economic crisis in the country turned out to be global in nature. The coronavirus pandemic forced Korean producers to halt production in India and Vietnam, which only exacerbated its export performance.

However, Asia’s fourth-largest economy had started to have difficulties well before COVID-19 emerged. The first signs of an economic disruption appeared in 2017. The coronavirus just exposed the fragile zones of the economy, acting as a catalyst for South Korea's economic downturn.

South Korea is far from the only country which has faced such difficulties. The IMF forecasts the global economy will contract 3% this year. This is certainly a large figure which indicates a recession. Notably, the previous 2009 global recession, set off by the global financial crisis, was not so grave, the economy declined by only 0.08%. In general, according to forecasts, 157 world economies out of the existing 194 ones are likely to shrink.