Korean Economic Outlook Gets Gloomier
19 August, 2019
The outlook for Korea's economic growth is getting bleaker as it faces worsening internal and external conditions.
According to forecasts by 42 domestic and overseas financial institutions compiled by Bloomberg on Sunday, Korea's economy is expected to grow 2 percent this year, down from 2.1 percent in July. This is considerably lower than the government's own prediction made last month of 2.4 to 2.5 percent.
About a quarter or 11 of the organizations forecast the country's growth rate to fall below 2 percent amid rising tensions with Japan and the trade war between China and the U.S., as well as fears of a recession in the U.S.
Among them are ING Group (1.4 percent), IHS Market (1.7 percent), Nomura Securities, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley (1.8 percent) and Bank of America Merrill Lynch and JP Morgan Chase (1.9 percent).
Yun Chang-hyun at the University of Seoul said, "If the U.S. goes into a recession, it will be a direct blow to the Korean economy as it is a major export market for us."
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