S. Korea`s population mobility drops in 2008

SEOUL, Feb. 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's population mobility fell in 2008 from a
year earlier as a slumping economy caused people to hold back on housing
transactions, a government report showed Wednesday.
The National Statistical Office (NSO) said slightly more than 8.8 million people
changed their legal residence during the year, down 2.9 percent from 2007.
The NSO said that no exact cause has been determined, but pointed out that
population mobility usually declines if economic conditions deteriorate.
In 2008, the economy managed to grow 2.5 percent down from 5 percent in the
previous year.
The report also said that overall movement fell in the fourth quarter with little
over 2 million people changing addresses, or 15.4 percent from a year earlier.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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