Industrial production in South Korea gained 0.4 percent on month in August, Statistics Korea said on Thursday.
That beat forecasts for a decline of 1.0 percent following the upwardly revised 0.3 percent contraction in July (originally -0.5 percent)
On a yearly basis, industrial production added 0.3 percent – also exceeding expectations for a fall of 1.0 percent following the upwardly revised 3.2 percent contraction in the previous month (originally -3.3 percent).
The index of all industry production was up 0.5 percent on month and 1.3 percent on year.
The manufacturing production index in August added 0.4 percent on month and 0.2 percent on year.
The Producer’s Shipment Index added 0.3 percent on month and 0.4 percent on year. The Producer’s Inventory Index gained 0.1 on month and 5.6 percent on year. The Production Capacity Index was flat on month and added 0.5 percent from on year.
The Index of Capacity Utilization Rate in August shed 0.5 percent on month and 0.7 percent on year. The Manufacturing Average Capacity Utilization Rate was 74.3 percent, down 0.4 percentage points from the previous month. The Index of Services gained 0.4 percent on month and 2.1 percent on year.
The Retail Sales Index advanced 1.9 percent on month and 1.8 percent on year. The Equipment Investment Index in August dipped 0.4 percent on month but surged 17.1 percent on year.
The Domestic Machinery Shipment Index in August added 2.8 percent from on year. The value of domestic machinery orders received plummeted 59.6 percent on year.
The value of construction completed at constant prices gained 3.9 percent on month and 4.5 percent on year. The value of construction orders received at current prices fell 3.7 percent from on year.
The Composite Coincident Index in August added 0.8 percent on month. The Cyclical Component of Composite Coincident Index, which reflects current economic situations, gained 0.3 points from the previous month.
The Composite Leading Index advanced 0.8 percent on month. The Cyclical Component of Composite Leading Index, which predicts the turning point in business cycle, gained 0.1 points on month.
Also on Thursday, the bureau said that retail sales in South Korea jumped 1.9 percent on month in August – following the 2.0 percent increase in July.
On a yearly basis, retail sales advanced 1.8 percent – slowing from 2.1 percent in the previous month.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company – www.instaforex.com