[AJU NEWS DB]
South Korea’s industrial output posted a surprise fall in October, hit hard by slumping exports in automobile and other key parts of output on weak global demand.
Industrial output in October fell by a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent from September, the fastest drop since the 1.6 per cent drop recorded in May when the country’s domestic consumption was hit by the spread of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
Analysts had predicted a positive 0.2 percent rise for October.
Monday’s gloomy data adds to signs that South Korea’s path to a sustained economic growth will be tortuous
"South Korea's exports plunged 15.9 percent in October, which affected overseas shipments of autos and chemical products," said Choi Jung-su, director of the short-term industrial statistics division.
Output of automobiles, which includes car parts, were down 2.8 percent while chemicals were off by 4 percent.
The service-sector output index edged up by a seasonally adjusted 0.2 percent in October on a monthly basis, slowing from a revised 1.1 percent gain in September but still posting a fourth straight month of rises.
Production in the service sector, a key part of the economy, managed to rise 0.2 percent from the previous month, the data showed.
Construction, another key part of the output, was down a sharp 7.8 percent on-month as public civil engineering projects dried up.
South Korea has pledged to maintain policies aimed at boosting domestic demand over the next year as the global economy shows no signs of restoring strong growth.
Addressing a meeting with heads of major domestic research institutes, Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan said on Friday these policies will enable the country to achieve the goal of lifting economic growth to 3 percent or higher.
"A clear improvement is hard to expect in the world economy next year and the government will employ measures that can boost the private-sector activity to the maximum so that the domestic demand-led recovery can continue," Mr Choi said.
Global ratings agency Moody's Investors Service have recently warned South Korea's economic growth would fail to post any meaningful rebound next year and stay below 3 percent.
The Bank of Korea also cut its forecast for this year's economic growth to 2.7 percent from the previous 2.8 percent, compared to an actual 3.3 per cent rise recorded in 2014.
By Alex Lee
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
![[OPINION] Assessing the trajectory of Chinas Economy: Growth or decline](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2024/01/31/20240131173956149557.jpg)
