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S. Korean manufacturers’ sentiment remains flat in Sept.

October 1, 2018

SEOUL, Oct. 2 (Yonhap) — South Korean manufacturers’ business sentiment for September remained unchanged from the previous month, but they had a more optimistic outlook for this month, central bank data showed Tuesday.

The business survey index (BSI) of manufacturing firms came to 73 in September, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).

A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists, while a reading above the benchmark means the opposite.

But the index measuring their sentiment for October inched up 1 point to 78, the data showed.

As for the non-manufacturing sector, the BSI for September rose 2 points on-month to 76 for September, with their expectations for this month remained unchanged at 77, the latest numbers said.

“Companies cited weak local consumption as the No. 1 difficulty in leading their businesses, though demand from overseas appears to have caused exporters to have more positive views on business conditions for the coming month,” the BOK said in a release.

The BSI reading was based on a survey of 3,113 firms conducted from Sept. 11-18, the central bank said.