S. Korea Aug factory output shrinks more than expected, retail sales jump

SEOUL – South Korea’s factory production shrank for a second month in August, missing expectations, while retail sales jumped, government data showed on Friday.

The country’s industrial output fell 1.8 percent on a seasonally-adjusted monthly basis, by a faster pace than 1.3 percent in July and 0.5 percent tipped in a Reuters poll.

It rose 1 percent compared with the same month a year earlier, also missing a 1.3-percent rise seen in the survey and marking the slowest pace since September 2021.

Output for the services sector rose 1.5 percent on month, while retail sales jumped 4.3 percent, marking the fastest gain since May 2020.