While the spread of Omicron mutations continued, the overall economic sentiment of all industries, centered on the manufacturing sector, deteriorated due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the rise in raw material prices.
According to the results of the business due diligence index (BSI) released by the Bank of Korea on the 31st, the BSI for all industries this month was 83, down 2 points from the previous month. Business sentiment has been declining for three consecutive months since January of this year.
BSI is a statistic that examines a company’s judgment and outlook on the current business situation. If there are more negative responses than positive responses, the index falls below 100.
The manufacturing sector’s BSI recorded 91, up 7 points from the previous month, but the non-manufacturing sector remained at the same level as last month at 81.
Looking at the detailed manufacturing sector, the automobile sector plunged 24 points due to a shortage of parts such as automotive semiconductors. Due to the rise in raw material prices, other mechanical equipment fell by 13 points and electronic video communication equipment fell by 10 points, respectively.
In the case of the non-manufacturing industry, the transportation and warehousing industry rose by 7 points as the volume of outbound cargo increased, and civil engineering design. Specialized science and technology also rose by 7 points due to the increase in supervision orders.
On the other hand, the information and communication industry fell by 3 points due to an increase in labor costs and other costs, and as the demand for external personnel decreased due to the spread of Omicron mutation, the business facility management support rental business also fell by 3 points.
The outlook for all industries for next month’s BSI index rose five points to 83.
With the global supply chain expected to be disrupted for a long time, the manufacturing industry outlook index fell 8 points to 85 from the previous month, and the non-manufacturing industry also fell 2 points to 82.
February’s Economic Sentiment Index (ESI), which reflects the Consumer Trend Index (CSI) in the BSI, recorded 103.4, up 2.3 points from the previous month.
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