Industrial output rebounds, retail sales fall in March amid omicron wave

Published : Apr 29, 2022 - 09:36 Updated : Apr 29, 2022 - 09:39

Containers are stacked up for outbound shipments at Gamman Pier in Busan on Friday. According to provisional tallies by customs authorities, the country's exports came in at $34.4 billion during the first 20 days of the year, up 22 percent from a year before. (Yonhap)

South Korea's industrial output rebounded in March after two straight months of decline, but retail sales fell on-month amid the fast spread of the omicron variant, data showed Friday.

Industrial production increased 1.5 percent in March from the previous month, compared with a 0.3 percent on-month drop in February, according to the data from Statistics Korea.

Compared with a year earlier, industrial output rose 3.1 percent.

Asia's fourth-largest economy has been on a recovery track on the back of robust exports and improving private spending. But it faces heightened economic uncertainty as soaring energy prices have put upward pressure on inflation amid Russia's war with Ukraine.

Retail sales, a gauge of private spending, fell 0.5 percent on-month last month, after remaining flat in February.

Facility investment decreased 2.9 percent in March, compared with a 5.6 percent decline in February. (Yonhap)