S. Korea's manufacturing sentiment rises for Q4

SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korean manufacturing sentiment is expected to
rise in the fourth quarter of this year amid signs of improving economic
conditions, a government poll showed Tuesday.

The business survey index (BSI) for 875 manufacturing companies polled rose to
113 for the October-December period from 108 predicted for the previous three
month period, according to the survey by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.
The figure is the highest reached since the fourth quarter of 2007 when the BSI
reached 114. A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The gains
also mark the fourth time that the future index has moved up compared to the
previous quarter.
"A large number of company executives polled predicted that overall business
conditions will improve in such areas as sales, domestic economy and exports,"
said Moon Sung-wook, a ministry official.
According to the findings, the BSI for overall sales and exports came to 116 and
109, respectively, with the index for profits reaching 104 and 114 for domestic
shipments.
The official cautioned, however, that the index is based on polls of
entrepreneurs, which do not reflect actual economic data or objective market
conditions.
Reflecting the disparity, the actual sentiment index that shows business
performance hit 106 for the third quarter, slightly lower than the 108 predicted
by manufacturers for the same three months in late June.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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