Slowing exports weigh on S. Korea's economic growth: ministry

Published : Nov 15, 2019 - 11:18 Updated : Nov 15, 2019 - 11:18

South Korea's weak investment and slowing exports have undermined its economic growth, the finance ministry said Friday.

"Overall industrial output and consumption are on the rise, but a sluggish trend persists in exports and construction investment, weighing on economic growth," the Ministry of Economy and Finance said in its monthly economic assessment report.

(Yonhap)

The report, called the "Green Book," is based on the latest economic indicators of such key factors as output, exports, consumption and corporate investment, which provide clues as to how Asia's fourth-largest economy has been faring in recent months.

South Korea's exports plunged 14.7 percent on-year to $46.78 billion in October, extending their slump to an 11th consecutive month due to weak prices of semiconductors and a trade row between the United States and China.

Outbound shipments of chips fell 32.1 percent on-year to $7.8 billion, dealing a blow to South Korea, where semiconductors account for nearly one-fifth of exports.

The ministry said there is uncertainty about the timing of a recovery of global demand for semiconductors, as well as over the trade dispute between the United States and China.

The trade row is a key factor affecting the South Korean economy as about 40 percent of its exports go to the US and China -- South Korea's top two trading partners and the world's two largest economies.

The ministry said it will explore measures to create momentum for an economic rebound.

Earlier this week, South Korea's state-run Korea Development Institute forecast that the country's economy will grow 2.3 percent in 2020, slightly higher than this year's estimated 2 percent expansion, on the back of a slight improvement in domestic demand and exports. (Yonhap)