The domestic venture industry has been in a recession for three consecutive quarters.
The Venture Industry Association announced the results of the '2025 1st quarter venture business condition index (BSI),' conducted on 1,200 venture companies, on the 3rd.
According to the Venture Industry Association, the 1st quarter BSI fell to 78.6, a decrease of 6.4 points compared to the previous quarter (85.0), marking three consecutive quarters of decline. This is the first time the venture business performance BSI has recorded below 80.
The venture business BSI is an indicator that reflects the performance of the venture industry. A value exceeding the benchmark of 100 indicates improvement compared to the previous quarter, while a value below 100 signifies poor performance.
By sector, the manufacturing sector's performance BSI decreased to 78.4, down 5.1 points from the previous quarter (83.5), marking the first time it recorded below 80. Among the detailed sectors, ▲medical and pharmaceutical (111.1) was the only one that did not show poor performance, while ▲food and beverage, textiles, non-metal, and other manufacturing (70.5) and ▲machinery, automotive, and metal (73.3) showed poor figures.
The service sector's performance BSI, which had been increasing since 2024, fell to 79.3 in the 1st quarter. The detailed sectors, including ▲wholesale and retail, research and development services, and other services (76.2), ▲information technology and broadcasting services (74.9), ▲software development and IT-based services (85.7), all fell below the benchmark.
By item, ▲business performance (81.4), ▲financial situation (80.2), ▲expense (86.1), and ▲human resource status (94.5) were all found to be poor.
The BSI forecast for venture companies for the 2nd quarter rose to 96.5, an increase of 7.6 points compared to the previous quarter (88.9). As it is still below the benchmark (100), recovery is expected to be slow.
Of the venture companies that expect the business climate to 'improve,' 75.8% anticipate that domestic sales will improve, expressing hope for recovery in domestic market demand. On the other hand, venture companies that expect the business climate to 'worsen' listed 'poor domestic sales (68.3%),' 'difficult funding conditions (45.0%),' and 'rising labor costs (21.8%)' as the main factors contributing to economic slowdown.
Song Byung-jun, chairman of the Venture Industry Association, noted, 'The record low of the 2025 1st quarter venture business BSI reflects the sluggish industry situation,' and emphasized that 'diverse support from the government and the National Assembly is needed to overcome domestic and external economic downturns.'