On Tuesday, data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) revealed that South Korea’s real gross domestic product (GDP) grew 0.6 percent in the second quarter of the year, compared to the 0.3 percent increase in the first three months.
The April-June period marked the fourth consecutive quarter of growth for the Asian country, which experienced a 0.3 percent contraction in the fourth quarter of 2022.
The second-quarter expansion was attributed to a decrease in imports, which dropped 3.7 percent, outpacing the 0.9 percent decline in exports.
Exports have been in a downward trend since October of 2022, largely due to monetary tightening by major economies and a slowdown in the information technology sector.
Private spending dropped slightly in the second quarter, while government spending and facility investment both decreased.
In August, the BOK maintained its growth forecast for the year at 1.4 percent, but noted that there are still high levels of uncertainty surrounding the Chinese economy and its effects, the performance of major economies, and the timing of a recovery in the IT sector.
The central bank also held its key interest rate at 3.5 percent for the fifth consecutive month, after seven rate hikes between April 2022 and January 2023.
In 2023, South Korea’s economy grew 2.6 percent, a slower rate than the 4.3 percent expansion in 2021, due to aggressive monetary tightening around the world.
Containers are stacked at a pier in South Korea’s largest port city of Busan, in this July 4, 2023, file photo. (Yonhap)
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