South Korea experienced a 0.3 percent decline in industrial output in May compared to April, with the mining and manufacturing sector falling by 3 percent due to decreased chip and pharmaceutical production. The semiconductor industry saw a significant 10 percent drop, primarily attributed to lower memory chip shipments. Despite this, officials remain optimistic about future growth potential in the chip sector.
The service sector, however, saw a 1.3 percent increase in output, driven by improved performance in finance and science industries. Retail sales also showed a slight uptick of 0.1 percent, driven by sales in automobile fuel and cosmetics. Durable goods sales, like automobiles, decreased by 3.4 percent, while non-durable and semi-durable goods sales increased by 0.9 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.
Additionally, facility investment decreased by 0.1 percent in May, mainly due to the underperformance of the machinery industry. Transportation segment investments rose by 0.2 percent, but machinery industry investments, including precision equipment, fell by 0.2 percent.
