Economic Growth Concerns

입력 2018.01.26 (15:18) 수정 2018.01.26 (16:40)

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[Anchor Lead]

Last year the Korean economy grew by a robust 3.1%, but fourth quarter figures coming out now are somewhat alarming. Officials can only be cautiously optimistic about economic prospects in the next few years ahead.

[Pkg]

Last year Korea's actual gross domestic product, or economic growth rate, stood at 3.1%. The figure returned to the 3% level for the first time in three years, since 2014. Private spending and facility investment have increased sharply to power the growth. The export-driven manufacturing sector has also fared well, recording the highest growth rate since 2011 at 4.2%.

[Soundbite] Chung Kyu-il(Bank of Korea) : "The service sector's growth stalled, but the manufacturers grew more robustly and the construction business maintained its high growth."

But the fourth quarter figure alone was not very encouraging. The fourth quarter growth rate recorded -0.2%, the first time the rate fell below zero since the fourth quarter of 2008, at the onset of the global financial crisis. However, the Bank of Korea explained the low figure was caused by the baseline effect of the third quarter's surprise growth of 1.5% and the long Chuseok holiday in October, and added that Korea's economy is growing solidly. Korea's exports, which recorded a record high last year, also remain strong as the export amount increased by more than 9% this January. But the immediate obstacle is the currency exchange rates, which fell to a three-year low.

[Soundbite] Shin Min-young(LG Economic Research Institute) : "Even with strong exports, the total amount shrinks when dollar is exchanged to won, directly hurting corporate profitability."

Also, the United States' recent trend of trade protectionism, which was manifested by the recent safeguard measure against Korean-made washing machines, is emerging as an undermining factor for the Korean economy.

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  • Economic Growth Concerns
    • 입력 2018-01-26 15:10:53
    • 수정2018-01-26 16:40:28
    News Today
[Anchor Lead]

Last year the Korean economy grew by a robust 3.1%, but fourth quarter figures coming out now are somewhat alarming. Officials can only be cautiously optimistic about economic prospects in the next few years ahead.

[Pkg]

Last year Korea's actual gross domestic product, or economic growth rate, stood at 3.1%. The figure returned to the 3% level for the first time in three years, since 2014. Private spending and facility investment have increased sharply to power the growth. The export-driven manufacturing sector has also fared well, recording the highest growth rate since 2011 at 4.2%.

[Soundbite] Chung Kyu-il(Bank of Korea) : "The service sector's growth stalled, but the manufacturers grew more robustly and the construction business maintained its high growth."

But the fourth quarter figure alone was not very encouraging. The fourth quarter growth rate recorded -0.2%, the first time the rate fell below zero since the fourth quarter of 2008, at the onset of the global financial crisis. However, the Bank of Korea explained the low figure was caused by the baseline effect of the third quarter's surprise growth of 1.5% and the long Chuseok holiday in October, and added that Korea's economy is growing solidly. Korea's exports, which recorded a record high last year, also remain strong as the export amount increased by more than 9% this January. But the immediate obstacle is the currency exchange rates, which fell to a three-year low.

[Soundbite] Shin Min-young(LG Economic Research Institute) : "Even with strong exports, the total amount shrinks when dollar is exchanged to won, directly hurting corporate profitability."

Also, the United States' recent trend of trade protectionism, which was manifested by the recent safeguard measure against Korean-made washing machines, is emerging as an undermining factor for the Korean economy.

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