[Anchor]
Last year, the South Korean economy grew by 2.0%.
The declaration of martial law in the fourth quarter of last year resulted in a growth rate of only 0.1%, dragging down the overall annual growth rate.
For more details, let’s connect with our economic correspondent.
Reporter Eun-rae Kang.
[Reporter]
Yes, last year, our country’s economic growth rate recorded 2.0%.
Today (the 23rd), the Bank of Korea announced that the GDP growth rate for the fourth quarter of last year was calculated at 0.1%.
The South Korean economy achieved a ‘surprise growth’ of 1.3% in the first quarter of last year but contracted by 0.2% in the second quarter. After a mere rebound of 0.1%, it barely avoided negative growth in both the third and fourth quarters.
As a result, the annual GDP growth rate for last year was recorded at 2.0%.
Previously, the Bank of Korea had forecasted a growth rate of 0.5% for the fourth quarter and 2.2% for the annual growth rate in 2024 in its economic outlook last November.
However, in the interim economic forecast released on the 20th, it cited factors such as martial law as having weakened economic sentiment and domestic demand at the end of the year, revising the fourth quarter growth rate projection to 0.2% and the annual growth rate to 2.0-2.1%.
Breaking down the fourth quarter GDP by category, government consumption increased by 0.5%, mainly due to health insurance benefits, but private consumption only grew by 0.2%.
Consumption of semi-durable goods like clothing and footwear, as well as services such as healthcare and education, slightly increased.
Facility investment, driven by machinery, increased by 1.6%, but construction investment plummeted by 3.2%, with declines in both buildings and civil engineering.
Exports, led by IT sectors including semiconductors, rose slightly by 0.3%, while imports fell by 0.1%, with decreases in automobiles and crude oil.
Looking at the entire last year, the growth in private consumption contracted to 1.1% from the previous year’s 1.8%.
Construction investment also shifted to a decline, dropping from 1.5% to -2.7%.
By economic activity, the growth rate in the service industry decreased from 2.1% to 1.6%, and the construction industry showed a sharp decline from 3.1% to -2.6%, reflecting the contracted domestic demand situation.
This has been reported by the economic department. [email protected]
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