South Korean consumer sentiment in December held steady from the previous month at a 33-month high as the local economy is showing signs of improvement, the central bank said Thursday, although the sub-index remained somewhat downbeat.
The consumer sentiment index (CSI) came in at 107 for December, unchanged from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The index is a gauge of consumers’ overall economic outlook, living conditions and future spending.
The data marked the highest level since the index hit 109 in February 2011.
A reading above 100 means that optimists outnumber pessimists.
The survey, based on a poll of 2,016 households nationwide, was conducted from Dec. 10-18.
The Korean economy grew 1.1 percent on-quarter in the July-September period, the same pace as in the previous quarter, on the back of improving domestic demand and a pickup in facility investment.
The BOK earlier said that the Korean economy is likely to grow 3.8 percent in 2014 after going up 2.8 percent this year.
The sub-index, which measures economic outlook, came in at 96 for December, down from 98 recorded in November. The index gauging the current economic assessment reached 84 for this month, compared with 87 in the previous month, the BOK said. (Yonhap News)
