The Republic of Korea’s economy grew at a slower-than-expected rate in the third quarter of the year amid softening export growth, central bank data showed Thursday.
Yonhap News Agency quoted preliminary data from the Bank of Korea as showing that the country’s real gross domestic product – a key measure of economic growth – gained 0.1 percent on-quarter in the July-September period.
The third-quarter figure is sharply lower than the market expectation of a 0.5 percent gain, and compares with the 0.2 percent on-quarter contraction in the April-June period and the 1.3 percent advance in the first quarter of the year.
On a yearly basis, Korea’s economy grew 1.5 percent in the third quarter, slowing from 2.3 percent growth for the second quarter of the year.
Private spending rose 0.5 percent on-quarter in the third quarter, recovering from a 0.2 percent on-quarter dip the previous quarter, the central bank said.
The country’s exports contracted 0.4 percent in the third quarter, compared with the 1.2 percen
t gain the previous quarter, while imports rose 1.5 percent in the July-September period, down from a 1.6 percent advance the previous quarter.
Source: Emirates News Agency