S.Korea Shows Signs of Improving Domestic Demand

South Korean manufacturers’ confidence increased for the second straight month as signs of improving domestic demand buoyed business sentiment.

An index measuring expectations for February increased to 72 from 70 for January, the Bank of Korea said in a statement in Seoul today. A measure of expectations at non-manufacturing companies advanced to 70 from 68. A reading below 100 indicates that pessimists outnumber optimists.

Improving domestic demand sent consumer sentiment to the highest level in eight months in January while the December unemployment rate stayed at a four-year low, adding to signs that Asia’s fourth largest economy is recovering. Gross domestic product grew 0.4 percent in the fourth quarter from the previous period, after two quarters of growth declines.

Bloomberg

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