Korean consumer sentiment dips to 4-month low in November

SEOUL, Nov. 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's consumer sentiment sank to a four-month
low in November due to concerns that the impact of a global recession was
spilling over into the domestic economy, the central bank said Tuesday.
According to the Bank of Korea (BOK), the consumer survey index (CSI) -- a gauge
of consumers' overall sense of their economic outlook, living conditions and
future spending -- dropped to 84 in November, compared to 88 the previous month.
It was the lowest level since July, when the index reached an identical 84.
"As the global recession cascaded into the real economy, consumer confidence was
severely weakened in November," the BOK said in a statement. "Consumers were
concerned about a fall in income and stagnant job markets."
A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The survey of 2,200
households in 56 major cities was taken from Nov. 12-19.
The index for the consumer spending outlook came in at 94 in November, marking
the lowest level since the first quarter of 1999 when it reached 94. It was the
first time for the index to fall below the benchmark 100 since the fourth quarter
of 2004, when it reached 97, the BOK added.
The outcome came as the South Korean economy grew 0.6 percent in the third
quarter from three months earlier, the slowest growth in four years, due to
sluggish domestic demand and lagging export growth.
According to government data, the country's inflation-adjusted household spending
contracted 2.4 percent in the third quarter of this year, the lowest since 2003,
when related data started to be compiled.
In early November, the BOK slashed its key interest rate to 4 percent, cutting a
combined 1.25 percentage point in the span of a month to bolster the sagging
economy.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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