Consumer confidence in South Korea slipped for the first time in five months as a
jump in virus cases and tighter social restrictions made households
more pessimistic about the economys outlook.To get more news about WikiFX, you can visit wikifx official website.
The consumer sentiment index fell to 79.4 in September from 88.2 the
previous month, the Bank of Korea said in a statement Friday. The 8.8
point decline was the largest since March when the country was reeling
from the first wave of the pandemic.
South Koreas economy showed signs of recovery at the start of the quarter, but the early momentum
lost steam as daily virus case counts soared to hundreds in August.
While the government has avoided imposing an economy-wide lockdown and
instead opted for targeted restrictions, the flareup is still expected
to have a significant impact on consumption and services.
The virus resurgence was a key factor when the central bank slashed its economic
outlook for this year to a 1.3% contraction in August, from an earlier
forecast for a 0.2% decline in May.
While South Korea has since managed to bring down daily caseloads to a little over hundred from the
peak of more than 400 in August, health officials warn the upcoming
Chuseok holiday could reignite infections with increased gatherings.
Among components of the headline index, households spending projections
dragged most, followed by expectations for income and their assessment
of the current state of the economy. Inflation expectations for the next
year rose 0.1 percentage point to 1.9%.
