South Korea's per capita income declined for the second consecutive year in 2020 due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and the local currency's depreciation against the U.S. dollar. 

According to the Bank of Korea on Wednesday, the country's gross national income(GNI) per capita came to 31-thousand-881 U.S. dollars in 2020, or down one percent from a year earlier. 

The GNI per capita is a nation's total income earned at home and abroad divided by its total population, and is widely considered an indicator of living standards.

As for this year, the central bank said the nation is expected to see its GNI per capita increase on-year unless the Korean won drastically loses its value against the U.S. dollar.