Manufacturing, Services, Retail Sales and Facilities Investment Down, Construction Investment Steady

Manufacturing, services, retail sales, facilities investment declined while construction investment remained steady in September. Employment continued to increase in October and consumer prices rose at a faster pace.

Industrial production decreased by 0.6 percent from the previous month in September as both manufacturing (down 1.8%, m-o-m and up 0.8%, y-o-y) and services (down 0.3%, m-o-m and up 5.6%, y-o-y) decreased.

In September, retail sales (down 1.8%, m-o-m and down 0.7%, y-o-y), facilities investment (down 2.4%, m-o-m and up 12.5%, y-o-y) went down while construction investment (no change (0.0%), m-o-m and up 3.9%, y-o-y) showed a steady tone.

Exports declined by 5.7 percent year-on-year in October led by a slump in the export of major items such as semiconductor and steel products. Average daily exports decreased by 7.9 percent from a year ago to US $2.44 billion in October 2022 from US $2.65 billion in October 2021.

The consumer sentiment index (CSI) declined by 2.6 points in October to 88.8 from the previous month. The business survey index (BSI) for the entire sector went down by 2 points from the previous month to 76, and the BSI outlook for November 2022 declined by 3 points to 76.

The cyclical indicator of the coincident composite index for September increased by 0.1 points and the cyclical indicator of the leading composite index fell by 0.1 points from the previous month.

The economy added 677,000 jobs year-on-year in October and the unemployment rate fell by 0.4 percentage points from a year ago to 2.4 percent.

The consumer prices grew by 5.7 percent year-on-year in October at a faster pace than the previous month due to an increase in public charge, and the core inflation rose by 4.8 percent.

In October, stock prices increased, the won strengthened, and Korean treasury yields returned to a decline after an increase at the beginning of the month due to market expectations about major economies’ adjusting the pace of tightening.

Housing prices decline is faster in September (-0.29% → -0.49%, m-o-m), and prices of Jeonse (lump-sum deposits with no monthly payments) also saw a faster decline (-0.28% → -0.50%, m-o-m).

While domestic demand has continued to improve gradually due to a recovery in employment and in-person service industries, amid continued high inflation and deteriorating economic sentiment due to external factors, there are concerns of economic slowdown such as export slowdowns.  

Internationally, with global inflationary pressure continuously rising, there are continued financial market volatility and economic downside risks due to major economies’ interest rate increases, the Russia-Ukraine war and China’s lockdown measures.   

The government will strengthen its efforts to revitalize export and investment, manage risks at home and abroad and implement structural reforms, while also focusing on taming prices and stabilizing people’s livelihood.

Key Statistics

Employment

Consumer Price Index

                                                                                         (%)

Mining, Manufacturing, Electricity and Gas Production

                (Percentage change from the previous period, %)

1. Preliminary

2. Mining, Manufacturing, Electricity and Gas Production

3. End-point (month, quarter, and year)

4. Average operation ratio for the month (or quarter)

Service Output

           (Percentage change from the previous period, %)

      1. Preliminary

Retail Sales

(Percentage change from the previous period, %)

1. Preliminary

Facility Investment Index

     (Percentage change from the previous period, %)

1. Preliminary

Construction Completed

 (Percentage change from the previous period, %)

1. Preliminary

Exports and Imports

 (US$ billion, y-o-y, %)

Composite Indices of Coincident and Leading Indicators

                                                                                           (Points)

1. Preliminary

Please refer to _MOEF Press Release_ Current Economic Situation_ November 2022.pdf.