DOMESTIC BUSINESSES HIT HARD BY COVID-19

[Anchor Lead]

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the economy. Although consumption recovered somewhat in May, production and investment continued to contract, while business sentiment still remains low.

[Pkg]

​Hyundai and Kia sold some 250,000 cars overseas in May. Their sales halved from the previous year because of the pandemic. The sharp decline in exports immediately resulted in a decrease in manufacturing. Back in May, production in the domestic auto sector shrank more than 21 percent on-month, while production of machinery was down nearly 13 percent. Semiconductor production rose nearly 11 percent, but overall production in the mining and manufacturing sectors fell 6.7 percent. Overall industrial production was down 1.2 percent from the previous month, posting a decline for five straight months.

[Soundbite] AHN HYUNG-JUN(STATISTICS KOREA) : "The pandemic had a limited impact on Korea's exports until March, but they contracted sharply from April, greatly undermining production in the manufacturing sector. The decline continued into May."

Due to the falling production, the average operation rate in the manufacturing sector fell short of 64 percent. That's the lowest level since January 2009. By contrast, service sector production rose 2.3 percent, while retail sales, a barometer of consumption trends, were up 4.6 percent. Meanwhile, facility investment shrank nearly 6 percent. The value of construction completed, which indicates results in the construction sector, was down 4.3 percent. Business sentiment also remains low. The Business Survey Index, a barometer of how businesses perceive the current economic situation, recorded 56 points in June, up from the previous month. However, it's still significantly lower compared to the level recorded shortly after the global financial crisis in March 2009.