The Green Book: Current Economic Trends
Overview The Korean economy saw exports and domestic demand improving, and employment recovering, while prices stabilizing. Mining and manufacturing production in May, backed by robust exports and domestic demand, rose 2.6 percent month-on-month and 21.5 percent year-on-year. Service output, while gaining 3.8 percent year-on-year, lost 1.2 percent month-and-month due to a temporary factor: a decrease in educational services as bonus incentives given to school employees were not paid as usual in May. Consumer goods sales edged up 1.1 percent month-on-month, while increasing 3.6 percent year-on-year, as the unusual low temperatures gave out and the World Cup games positively affected the sales. In May facilities investment rose 3.9 percent month-on-month due to an increasing demand for production facilities backed by robust exports, while growing 22.3 percent year-on-year. Construction completed increased 4.0 percent month-on-month and 0.5 percent year-onyear, as both building construction and civil engineering works improved. The total number of workers hired in May gained 586,000 month-on-month, led by the manufacturing and service sectors. The employment rate (seasonally adjusted) posted 59.1 percent, adding 0.3 percentage points month-on-month, while the unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted) landed at 3.2 percent, shedding 0.5 percentage points. Exports in June, on the basis of brisk semiconductors and automobiles, hit a record high, jumping 32.4 percent year-on-year. Imports soared 36.9 percent year-on-year, led by raw and capital materials. The consumer price in June, despite a price rise in some manufactured goods, posted a stable year-on-year increase of 2.6 percent, as relatively low prices of agricultural, livestock, and fishery products offset the rising price of manufactured goods. In June, uncertainties in the financial market escalated amid both positive and negative situations arising; the former being economic recovery and eased concerns about eurozones fiscal difficulties, and the latter slowing down global economy. Housing markets showed regional distinction in June, as the Seoul metropolitan area continued to post falling prices and shrinking sales, while provincial housing markets put up a small but steady rise in prices. To sum up, although the Korean economy shows clear signs of improvement, concerns over ongoing global economic recovery build up as Southern European countries fiscal difficulties might prolong and the US and Chinese economies might slow down. The Korean government will continue macroeconomic policies which facilitate sustainable economic growth, while stepping up the monitoring of external situations. On the other hand, the government will hold on to policies to create more jobs and strengthen social safety nets in an effort to help improving economic indicators trickle down to the working class. * For further details, please refer to the attached file
Jul 2010
