News
The Korean economy continues to show a stable recovery in both export and domestic demand. The mining and manufacturing and service industries showed a stronger growth pace in February, keeping up with the economic recovery. The mining and manufacturing production growth rate dropped to 19.1% compared to the previous month, while the service industry production index recorded 7.1%, an increase from the previous month (4.3%). Economic indicators related to consumption showed that private consumption continued to grow. The retail sales index recorded 12.9%, up from the previous month (6.8%). In February, indicators related to investment continued to increase, while indicators related to construction reversed downward. The equipment investment index recorded an 18.0% growth rate, slightly down from the previous month (19.4%) which was caused by increased investment in machinery, such as semiconductor equipment. Indicators related to construction recorded a downturn after a moderate recovery over the past few months.
Both exports and imports increased almost to the same levels due to an increase in the number of operation days, thus the trade account in March recorded a surplus of US$2.19 billion. Imports recorded US$35.49 billion, slightly increasing from the previous month and influenced by the continued rise in imports in all sectors.
The indicators related to the labor market showed signs of moderate recovery in February. CPI in March recorded a 2.3% growth rate, a decrease from the previous month (2.7%) due to stabilized service prices. Core inflation recorded 1.5%, a decrease from the previous month (1.9%), while its month-on-month growth rate registered 0.1%, showing signs of stabilization. The Treasury bond yields registered 3.89% as of late March, while the KRW/USD exchange rate recorded 1,130.8 won. The KOSPI Index slightly rose, closing at 1692.85 as of late March due to the continuing strength in global stock markets and constant stock buying by both foreign and institutional investors.