SEOUL, 9th July, 2023 (WAM) — The South Korean economy appears to have passed its nadir recently on the back of the recovery in the manufacturing sector, a state-run think tank said Sunday. The assessment came after Asia’s fourth-largest economy saw its industrial output rise 1.3 percent in May from a month earlier, with retail sales and facility investment gaining ground as well. “The Korean economy appears to be navigating its economic trough, with a partial easing in the downturn of the manufacturing industry,” the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said, according to Yonhap. “The manufacturing industry shows signs of moderating its contraction, as evidenced by a slower decrease in production and exports, notably in semiconductors,” it added. Exports of semiconductors, the country’s key export item, sank 28 percent on-year in June amid falling demand and a drop in chip prices. The drop, however, slowed from a 36.2 percent on-year decrease tallied a month earlier. “The downturn in semiconductor production has been tapering off steadily since March, while export volume has taken a turn toward growth,” the KDI said. In May, South Korea’s output in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries rose 3.2 percent on-month following the robust performance of the automobile and chip segments, which advanced 8.7 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively, separate data from Statistics Korea showed.

Source: Emirates News Agency (WAM)