Seoul [South Korea], November 28 : South Korea's industrial output posted its steepest decline in nearly six years in October, driven by a strong base effect from the robust readings in the previous month, data showed on Friday, as per a report by Pulse, the English service of Maeil Business News Korea.
As per the news report, data released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics, the country's overall industrial output declined 2.5 per cent to 112.9 in October from a month earlier.
It is the largest decline since a 2.9 percent fall in February 2020, as per the Pulse news report.
The index fell in April and May before rebounding in June and July.
It lost 0.3 per cent in August and rose 1.3 per cent in September, showing a pattern of alternating monthly gains and losses, the news report noted.
The seasonally adjusted mining and manufacturing output fell 4 per cent in October, largely due to a sharp 26.5 per cent drop in semiconductor production, the largest decline in 43 years, the news report noted.
The decline was largely attributable to a high base effect following a surge of around 20 per cent in chip production in September. The drop came despite the increase in global chip demand driven by the recent artificial intelligence (AI) boom.
"The decline is mainly due to a base effect after the semiconductor index hit an all-time high in September," said Lee Doo-won, director of economic trend statistics at the ministry. "Overall, production momentum remains solid thanks to the semiconductor boom."
Retail sales, a gauge of private consumption, rose 3.5 percent in October from the previous month, turning positive for the first time in three months.
The increase, largely influenced by a base effect similar to the production indicators, marked the highest growth rate in two years and eight months since an increase of 6.1 percent in February 2023.
Sales of food, beverages, and apparel increased, largely influenced by the Chuseok holiday, the news report added.
Service output, an indicator of service-sector consumption, on the other hand, fell 0.6 percent, returning to negative territory after one month.
Facility investment fell 14.1 percent on month, due to declines of 12.2 percent and 18.4 percent in machinery and transportation equipment, respectively, it added. The cyclical component of the coincident composite index, a measure of current economic conditions, fell 0.4 point from the previous month. The cyclical component of the leading composite index, which predicts future economic conditions, remained unchanged from the prior month, data showed, the news report concluded.
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