South Korea¡¯s exports are expected to remain relatively stable in the second quarter (Q2) this year after two quarters of
sluggish business conditions.
The Institute for International Trade (IIT) under the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said, Korea¡¯s export
business survey index (EBSI) for the upcoming quarter surged 5.9 points from the previous quarter to 94.9, a reading above
90 indicating a slightly upbeat forecast.
Korean exporters¡¯ outlook for business conditions improved as the U.S. consumer sentiment and investment-related indicators
edged up.
In addition, the Eurozone debt crisis turned into a more stabilized stage upon the IMF¡¯s approval of a second rescue fund for Greece, and exporters anticipate export conditions would not be aggravated any further. However, the EBSI failed to exceed the 100 mark, the baseline, reflecting Korean exporters¡¯ concerns are still lingering over export environments.
By item, although exports of most items are projected to maintain the previous level or be slightly weaker, the number of items that recorded an EBSI reading below 100 declined from the previous quarter.
Korea¡¯s major export items such as semiconductors, steel products and automobiles remained unchanged in their EBSI readings compared to the previous quarter while the indices for mobile phones/components and computers picked up for the first time in four quarters.
However, the index for petroleum products is among the lowest by marking 50.0 as the overall profitability of petroleum product exporters is forecast to be dented by high oil prices. In addition, ship exporters¡¯ outlook for their business conditions is also expected to remain bleak as the EBSI for ships, which logged the lowest EBSI reading (62.5) in Q1, recorded 78.0 in Q2.
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