Foreign investment banks have generally lowered their economic growth outlooks for Korea for 2015.<br />The average is in accordance with the Bank of Korea's outlook of 3-point-4 percent… <br />but some have gone down to the two percent range... on weaker domestic consumption and falling oil prices.<br />Sohn Jung-in reports.<br /><br />Foreign investment banks were prompt to adjust Korea's growth forecast on mounting downward pressure.<br />According to Bloomberg, the market median for Korea's growth forecast stood at 3-point-4 percent on Thursday... in line with the Bank of Korea's forecast.<br />Bloomberg's survey of 27 institutions showed... Nomura has slashed its outlook for Korea's growth to 2-point-5 percent from its earlier forecast of 3-percent,... becoming the first foreign institution to project an expansion in the two-percent range. <br />Analysts cited slumping domestic consumption and slowing exports as factors denting the growth rate,... along with the global economy recovering at a slower pace than anticipated.<br />They say external factors such as the prospect of the U.S. raising its interest rate... and the weakening of the Japanese yen could also drag Korea's growth down further.<br />But some investment banks have kept their rosy outlooks. Barclays has projected a growth rate of 4-percent, while Credit Suisse has matched the government's outlook of 3-point-eight percent. <br />Inflation projections, however, by foreign investment banks have dropped to 1-point-3 percent... from an earlier figure of 1-point-7 percent, as Seoul is under a stronger deflationary pressure this year.<br />Domestic research institutes have also indicated that they could lower the inflation outlook in their quarterly projections next month,... with oil prices at a lower level than they projected last year.<br />Sohn Jung-in, Arirang News.
