Since hitting a seven-year high of one-hundred-and-twelve in November, Korea's consumer sentiment index has been on a steady decline.
Kim Hyesung has the details.
South Korea's consumer sentiment fell for a fourth consecutive month in March.
According to the Bank of Korea, the composite consumer sentiment index edged down zero-point-one points from the previous month to 108-point-one-- the lowest level since October.
The reading is well above 100, meaning there are still more optimists than pessimists.
But a sub-index on households’ perception of the current domestic economic conditions dropped to a six-month-low of 87 index points in March, while the sub-index for future prospects inched down one point from February’s 98.
The Central Bank attributed the fall to growing worries over trade protectionism and the U.S.-China trade spat that could hurt Korean exports to the world’s first and second-largest economies.
The restructuring of local shipbuilding companies and the GM Korea shutdown also dampened consumer confidence.
The survey respondents were less pessimistic about future job searches, which climbed one index point from February to record 94.
The expected inflation rate over the next 12 months was 2-point-6 percent in March, holding steady since January.
Kim Hyesung, Arirang News.
