South Korea’s industrial output declined for the second consecutive month in June, but retail sales and facility investment rebounded, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea.
Yonhap News Agency reported that industrial production edged down 0.1 percent month-on-month in June, following a 0.8 percent drop a month earlier.
The decrease was driven by a 0.3 percent decline in construction sector output and a 5.1 percent tumble in the public administration field.
However, the semiconductor sector’s output jumped 8.1 percent on strong demand for chips, offsetting a notable fall in pharmaceutical production, resulting in a 0.5 percent rise in overall manufacturing and mining output.
Retail sales, a measure of private spending, advanced 1 percent month-on-month as demand for automobiles and other durable goods climbed 5.2 percent.
This marked the first monthly growth since March.
Sales of semi-durable goods, such as clothing, inched up 0.8 percent, while those of non-durable goods, including food, lost 0.9 percent, the data showed.
On an annual basis, retail sales fell 3.6 percent last month amid lingering concerns about weak domestic demand due to high inflation and elevated interest rates.
South Korea sets new car export record
Last month, data showed that South Korea’s car exports reached in H1 2024 a new record high, driven by growing global demand for hybrid and electric models. The combined value of car shipments in the January-June period amounted to $37 billion, representing a 3.8 percent increase compared to the same period in the previous year. The number of cars exported totaled 1,467,196 units, up 3.2 percent over the same period.
However, in June 2024 alone, automobile exports edged down 0.4 percent to $6.2 billion. The ministry attributed this slight decline mainly to fewer business days during the month.
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