Foreign ownership of South Korean land grew 6.2 percent in 2008 due to an increasing need for space to build houses and factories, Yonhap News said quoting a government report Tuesday.
According to the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, foreigners owned 210.35 square kilometers at the end of last year, compared with 198.16 sq. km a year earlier.
Foreign ownership accounted for 0.2 percent of the nation's total mass and was worth 28.92 trillion won ($21 billion), the report said.
Foreigners ― including foreign nationals, ethnic Koreans with foreign citizenship, joint South Korean-foreign businesses and foreign-owned companies ― bought 36.16 sq. km of land last year, while selling off 23.97 sq. km.
Ethnic Koreans owned the largest amount, holding 47.3 percent of the total, followed by joint ventures and foreign entities with 38.1 percent and 9.9 percent, respectively, according to the report.