S. Korean gov't sees solid economic growth trend amid surging exports, investment

SEOUL, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- The South Korean government saw a solid economic growth trend amid surging exports and expanding investment despite lingering external uncertainties, a finance ministry report said Friday.

The Ministry of Finance and Economy said in its monthly report, called Green Book, that the Asian economy recently showed a steady trend of robust growth as exports rose substantially and investment growth widened while private consumption improved moderately.

The country's real gross domestic product (GDP), adjusted for inflation, swelled 1.0 percent in the third quarter from the previous quarter, more than tripling the initial forecast of 0.3 percent.

Exports, the primary engine of the South Korean economy, soared 93.7 percent in October from a year earlier, while the daily average exports jumped 76.1 percent on strong demand for memory chips and solid-state drives (SSDs) used in artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Facility investment mounted 4.1 percent quarter-on-quarter in the third quarter, but private consumption shrank 0.2 percent in the quarter, with the composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) falling to 105.4 in October from 106.6 in September.

The ministry cautioned that concerns over burdens on people's livelihoods persisted owing to upward inflationary pressure from high oil prices amid ongoing uncertainties from the Middle East conflicts, as well as difficult conditions to find jobs among vulnerable groups.

Consumer prices gained 2.8 percent in October from a year earlier, slightly lower than an increase of 2.9 percent in the previous month.

The number of jobs was up 139,000 year-on-year in October, staying in the 100,000 range for a fourth consecutive month.