Korea: Business confidence steady but remains in negative territory in December
Business confidence among manufacturing firms came in at 88.0 in December, matching November’s reading. As a result, the index remained below the 100-point threshold, and indicated pessimism among businesses.
The print came amid minor changes across components: while manufacturing firms eased their pessimism regarding export-oriented demand, firms’ sentiment became more downbeat regarding the domestic market. More negatively, businesses’ views on profitability deteriorated significantly.