Manufacturing Confidence
Korean manufacturers’ confidence in business conditions has contracted for four months straight, after showing an upward trend in August.
The Business Sentiment Index (BSI), gauging manufacturers’ assessment of business conditions, lost three points again to go down to 78 in November from one month earlier, according to data released on November 26 by the Bank of Korea (BOK).
A reading above the benchmark 100 means optimistic companies outnumber pessimistic ones, while a reading below 100 means otherwise.
The Economic Sentiment Index (ESI), an indicator of both corporate and consumer sentiment about business conditions, remained at 94 in November, the same as a month ago.
“The BSI dropped in November, but this is attributed to a steep rise in October’s figures. Considering that November’s Economic Sentiment Index (ESI) remained unchanged from the previous month, the business sentiment index is on the rise,” said Lee Sung-ho, a statistics manager at BOK.
Like the business sentiment index, an ESI reading above 100 means that private sector sentiment on economic conditions beats the historic average, while a reading below 100 means otherwise.