The sentiment of corporations in the domestic market has deteriorated for 36 consecutive months.
The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) reported that the corporate business sentiment index (BSI) for January recorded a figure of 87.3, based on a survey of 600 major corporations, on the 30th. Since February 2022 (91.5), it has fallen below the benchmark of 100 for 36 consecutive months. This marks the second-longest stretch since the record of 70 months from May 2015 to February 2021.
A BSI figure above 100 indicates that more corporations see the economy as improved compared to the previous month, while a figure below 100 signifies the opposite.
By industry, the BSI for manufacturing was recorded at 86.5, while the BSI for non-manufacturing was 88.0. There were no detailed sectors in manufacturing that exceeded 100. The pharmaceutical and electronic communication equipment sectors each recorded 100. The following sectors were general and precision machinery (89.5), wood, furniture, and paper (87.5), food and beverage, and tobacco (86.7), petroleum refining and chemicals (85.7), textiles, clothing, leather, and shoes (84.6), and automobiles and other transportation equipment (83.3). The lowest readings were for metal and metal products and non-metallic materials and products at 80.0.
In the non-manufacturing sector, leisure, accommodation, and food service, along with professional and scientific technical and business support services, were each recorded at 107.1. In contrast, the construction sector was only at 64.3.
Lee Sang-ho, head of the economic industry division at FKI, noted, 'If the decline in corporate performance continues, the structure of slow economic growth may solidify, so legislation to revitalize the industry must be promptly implemented.'