South Korea's business sentiment index climbed to its strongest point in nearly four years during August, propelled by robust manufacturing confidence amid the summer holiday season and an improved outlook for the services sector, according to a survey released by the central bank on Wednesday.
Data from the Bank of Korea showed that the Composite Business Sentiment Index (CBSI) for all industries rose 1.1 points from the previous month to 99.6 in August, marking the highest reading since September 2022, when the index reached 102 in the post-COVID period. The index gauges corporate expectations for overall business conditions, with any figure below 100 indicating that pessimism outweighs optimism among firms.
The central bank noted that sentiment in the non-manufacturing sector, including transportation, leisure, broadcasting, and film, improved during the peak summer travel season. In August, the manufacturing CBSI advanced 0.6 percentage points month-on-month to 103.8, while the non-manufacturing index climbed 1.5 percentage points to 96.7. This marks the fourth consecutive month that the manufacturing index has remained above the 100 threshold, a level it first crossed in May for the first time since August 2022.
Looking ahead, the survey indicated that the outlook index for September rose 3.1 points from the previous month's reading of 96.5, reaching 99.6. Meanwhile, the Economic Sentiment Index (ESI), which reflects the overall mood of both consumers and businesses, advanced 1.5 percentage points in August to 99.4.
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