The outlook for small and medium enterprises has risen for two consecutive months.
The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises noted on the 30th that the April business outlook index (SBHI) rose by 1.0 point to 75.7 compared to the previous month. It has increased for two consecutive months, but it is down 5.3 points compared to April of last year. This survey targeted 3,070 small and medium enterprises from the 13th to the 19th.
The SBHI fell for four consecutive months from November of last year until February of this year, before rebounding in March. An SBHI index above 100 means more companies view the economic outlook positively, while an index below 100 indicates the opposite.
In April, by sector, manufacturing rose by 1.9 points to 82.6, while non-manufacturing increased by 0.6 points to 72.7. Within non-manufacturing, construction rose by 6.7 points to 72.5, but the service sector fell by 0.8 points to 72.7.
In March, the most cited hardship factor for small and medium enterprises was poor sales, at 60.3%. This was followed by rising labor costs (35.6%) and increasing raw material prices (30.9%), with intensified competition among businesses ranking next.