South Korea’s economy experienced respectable growth in the past year, despite challenges like sluggish exports and subdued domestic demand amid global monetary tightening, as reported by Yonhap News Agency on Thursday.
According to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK), the nation’s real gross domestic product, a pivotal gauge of economic growth, saw a 1.4 percent increase last year, aligning with the central bank’s previous estimate. However, this expansion marked a slowdown from the 2.6 percent growth in 2022 and 4.3 percent in 2021.
In the final quarter of the previous year, the fourth-largest economy in Asia recorded a 0.6 percent advancement on a quarterly basis. The central bank attributed last year’s expansion to the resilience of exports and domestic demand.
Despite the global economic slowdown and substantial monetary tightening by major economies, South Korea’s exports grew by 2.8 percent last year, a deceleration from the previous year’s 3.4 percent gain. Imports also slowed to 3 percent from 3.5 percent. Notably, exports had been on a year-on-year decline since October 2022 but rebounded in September.
Private spending in the country increased by 1.8 percent last year, contrasting with the 4.1 percent growth in the previous year. Government spending also decelerated to 1.3 percent from 4 percent, while construction investment witnessed a turnaround, rising by 1.4 percent last year compared to a 2.8 percent decline, according to the provided data.
In its response to a slowdown in growth amid moderating inflation, the central bank maintained its key interest rate at 3.5 percent for the eighth consecutive time earlier this month, according to WAM.
