South Korea Industrial Production Rallies 2.2% In April

(RTTNews) - Industrial output in South Korea climbed a seasonally adjusted 2.2 percent on month in April, Statistics Korea said on Friday.

That followed the upwardly revised 3.0 percent contraction in March (originally -3.2 percent).

On a yearly basis, industrial production jumped 6.1 percent after adding 1.0 percent in the previous month.

Retail sales were down 1.2 percent on month after gaining 1.1 percent a month earlier.

The Index of All Industry Production in April increased by 1.1 percent from the previous month and 3.1 percent from the same period of the previous year.

The Manufacturing Production Index rose 2.8 percent on month and 6.5 percent on year. The Manufacturing Shipment Index added 1.8 percent on month and 3.8 percent on year. The Manufacturing Inventory Index gained 0.9 percent on month but sank 7.8 percent on year.

The Production Capacity Index eased 0.3 on month but rose 1.4 percent on year. The Index of Capacity Utilization Rate in April climbed 2.9 percent on month and 3.1 percent on year. The Manufacturing Average Capacity Utilization Rate marked 73.5 percent, up 2.1 percentage points from the previous month.

The Index of Services in April rose 0.3 percent on month and 2.0 percent on year. The Retail Sales Index shed 1.2 percent on month and 2.6 percent on year. The Equipment Investment Index dipped 0.2 percent on month and 2.3 percent on year.

The Domestic Machinery Shipment Index in April added 4.5 percent on year. The value of Domestic Machinery Orders Received tumbled an annual 16.2 percent. The value of Construction Completed at constant prices increased 5.0 percent on month and 0.8 percent on year.

The value of Construction Orders Received at current prices surged 41.9 percent on year. The Composite Coincident Index in April showed no change from the previous month. The Cyclical Component of Composite Coincident Index, which reflects current economic situations, eased 0.2 points from the previous month.

The Composite Leading Index in April increased by 0.4 percent from the previous month. The Cyclical Component of Composite Leading Index, which predicts the turning point in business cycle, increased by 0.1 points from the previous month.