There is an outlook that the business climate for venture companies will improve next year.
According to the "2025 fourth-quarter venture business survey index (BSI)" released by the Korea Venture Business Association on the 22nd, the outlook BSI for the first quarter next year was 100.8, exceeding the baseline of 100. The BSI is an index that reflects performance and outlook for the venture sector's business conditions. A reading above 100 indicates better conditions than the previous quarter, and below 100 indicates worse conditions than the previous quarter.
Venture companies that projected "improvement" cited stronger domestic sales (81.7%), smoother financing conditions (35.5%), and stronger exports (22.9%) as key factors. The share of corporations forecasting smoother financing conditions rose 26.9 percentage points from the previous quarter (8.6%).
Venture companies that projected deterioration pointed to weak domestic sales (86.6%) as the main reason. Difficult financing conditions (32.4%) and higher raw material prices (25.6%) followed. The response rate for higher raw material prices increased 11.2 percentage points from the previous quarter (14.4%), reflecting concerns about a rising exchange rate.
By industry, manufacturing slipped slightly to 97.0 from 97.5 the previous quarter, while services (105.1) rose 1.5 points. By item, business performance (105.1), financing conditions (100.2), and labor conditions (100.2) were above the baseline.
Productivity (105.0), domestic sales (104.8), and overseas sales (100.1) also all exceeded 100. In the financing conditions institutional sector, lending (97.6) and investment attraction (95.3) reached the highest level since then.
The fourth-quarter performance BSI was tallied at 95.3, up 5.4 points from the third quarter (89.9). It is the highest figure since the survey began.
By industry, both manufacturing (91.2) and services (100.1) improved from the previous quarter. Telecommunications and broadcasting equipment (96.2) rose 20.8 points from the previous quarter (75.4). In services, which topped the baseline for the first time, information and communications and broadcasting services (102.4) and software development and IT-based services (102.3) led the improvement.
Association Secretary-General Lee Jeong-min said, "As the first-quarter outlook index exceeded the baseline, the venture business climate appears to be entering a full-fledged recovery phase."
Lee added, "In the new year, a complex crisis of global uncertainty, geopolitical conflicts, and domestic demand stagnation is likely to continue," and "it is important that the 'comprehensive plan for Korea to leap to the world's top four in ventures' released by the government be implemented quickly and without setbacks so it can be felt on the ground."