ID :
91309
Tue, 11/24/2009 - 13:28
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/91309
The shortlink copeid
S. Korean consumer sentiment falls in Nov.
SEOUL, Nov. 24 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's consumer confidence fell for the time in
eight months in November amid lingering concerns about the pace of the economic
recovery, the central bank said Tuesday.
The consumer survey index (CSI) -- a gauge of consumers' overall economic
outlook, living conditions and future spending -- reached 113 in November, down
from 117 the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The November figure marked the first decline since March when the index dipped by
one point to 84, but it still stayed above the benchmark 100, it added.
A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The survey of 2,200
households in 56 major cities was taken from Nov. 10-17.
"The CSI declined as consumers were cautious amid rising prospects that
fourth-quarter economic growth will likely slow, and the easing of rising stock
and asset prices also contributed to the fall in the index," said Jeong Kui-yun,
an official at the BOK. "Fears of the spreading Influenza A virus affected
households' outlooks for overall expenditures."
A sub-index measuring households' outlook for spending on health care reached 121
in November, up one point from the previous month, as consumers expected that
their medical expenses may rise due to the spread of the H1N1 virus. Meanwhile,
an index measuring outlooks for spending on cultural life declined 2 points to
94, the BOK said.
The result came as the South Korean economy grew 2.9 percent in the third quarter
from three months earlier, the fastest quarterly expansion in more than seven
years. Despite rising signs of an economic recovery, the government and the
central bank have cast cautious outlooks for the economy.
On Nov. 12, BOK Gov. Lee Seong-tae hinted that the bank would be not in hurry to
tighten monetary policy for the time being, due to the still murky outlook for
the global economy. Asia's fourth-largest economy is widely expected to lose
steam in the fourth quarter on the waning effects of fiscal spending.
The BOK cut the policy rate by a total of 3.25 percentage points to a record low
of 2 percent between October last year and February in an attempt to put the
brakes on a sharp economic free-fall.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)
eight months in November amid lingering concerns about the pace of the economic
recovery, the central bank said Tuesday.
The consumer survey index (CSI) -- a gauge of consumers' overall economic
outlook, living conditions and future spending -- reached 113 in November, down
from 117 the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The November figure marked the first decline since March when the index dipped by
one point to 84, but it still stayed above the benchmark 100, it added.
A reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists. The survey of 2,200
households in 56 major cities was taken from Nov. 10-17.
"The CSI declined as consumers were cautious amid rising prospects that
fourth-quarter economic growth will likely slow, and the easing of rising stock
and asset prices also contributed to the fall in the index," said Jeong Kui-yun,
an official at the BOK. "Fears of the spreading Influenza A virus affected
households' outlooks for overall expenditures."
A sub-index measuring households' outlook for spending on health care reached 121
in November, up one point from the previous month, as consumers expected that
their medical expenses may rise due to the spread of the H1N1 virus. Meanwhile,
an index measuring outlooks for spending on cultural life declined 2 points to
94, the BOK said.
The result came as the South Korean economy grew 2.9 percent in the third quarter
from three months earlier, the fastest quarterly expansion in more than seven
years. Despite rising signs of an economic recovery, the government and the
central bank have cast cautious outlooks for the economy.
On Nov. 12, BOK Gov. Lee Seong-tae hinted that the bank would be not in hurry to
tighten monetary policy for the time being, due to the still murky outlook for
the global economy. Asia's fourth-largest economy is widely expected to lose
steam in the fourth quarter on the waning effects of fiscal spending.
The BOK cut the policy rate by a total of 3.25 percentage points to a record low
of 2 percent between October last year and February in an attempt to put the
brakes on a sharp economic free-fall.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)
