8월 소비심리 전월비 하락...2017년 1월이래 최저<br /><br />South Korean consumers appear to be losing confidence in the local economy.<br />The consumer sentiment index for August, based on a survey of 25-hundred households, fell to its lowest level in more than two years.<br />Kim Hyesung reports.<br />South Korea's consumer sentiment fell near three-and-a-half points on-month to 92-point-five in August.<br />According to the Bank of Korea, the index has fallen for a fourth consecutive month.<br />It's at the lowest level since January 2017, and its second lowest since the 2008 global financial crisis.<br />A reading below 100 means there are more pessimists than optimists about the local economy.<br />The central bank attributed the fall to Japan's export restrictions, the escalating U.S.-China trade dispute, sluggish exports, and a worsening stock market.<br />All six sub-indices that make up the consumer sentiment index dropped.<br />The sub-index on households' income outlook dropped two points to 94 for August, the lowest level since April 2009.<br />The sub-indices on current and future domestic economic conditions also declined to 63 and 66 respectively.<br />Inflation expectations fell to an all-time low of two percent.<br />The sharp fall in consumer confidence comes as Korean policymakers sound increasingly downbeat about the economy.<br />Bank of Korea governor Lee Ju-yeol had said last week the bank's two-point-two percent growth forecast for 2019 would not be achievable if exports and investment remain sluggish.<br />Kim Hyesung, Arirang News.<br />
