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South Korea's gross domestic product expanded by a revised, seasonally adjusted 3.2 percent compared to the previous three months, the Bank of Korea said on Friday, growing for the third consecutive quarter.
Analysts had been expecting GDP to hold steady at the advanced reading of 2.9 percent posted on October 26. It also marked the fastest growth since a 3.8 percent advance in the first quarter of 2002.
On an annual basis, GDP came in higher by 0.9 percent. That beat expectations for a 0.8 percent annual increase following the 0.6 percent gain that had been originally reported. It also represented the first annual growth in four quarters.
On the production side, the manufacturing sector increased 9.8 percent, which was mainly due to the growth in cars, and IT manufacturing such as semiconductors and electronic products.
The construction sector decreased 0.5 percent, which was attributable to the sluggishness in civil engineering. Services rose by 0.7 percent, mainly led by growth in the transport and storage, health and social work, and wholesale & retail trade sectors.
On the expenditure side, private consumption rose by 1.5 percent owing to a large increase in expenditures on non-durables such as food and non-beverages and quasi- durables including clothing and footwear while purchases of automobiles maintained a high growth rate.
Facilities investment increased by 10.4 percent, which was boosted by investment in transport equipment and machinery and equipment. Construction investment, however, decreased by 2.0 percent due to a decline in civil engineering.
Exports of goods grew by 5.2 percent, led by increased exports of cars and IT manufacturing such as semiconductors and electronic products. Imports of goods similarly rose by 8.6 percent.
Real GDP increased 0.9 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2009.
On the production side, the service sector grew with increasing speed, while manufacturing, and agriculture, forestry and fishing both shifted to a positive growth rate.
On the expenditure side, construction investment and government expenditure showed sustained growth. Private consumption and exports of goods shifted to a positive growth rate. Domestic demand decreased by 4.4 percent year-on-year.
Despite the better than expected data, most analysts predict that the Bank of Korea will keep interest rates on hold at the record low 2 percent at its monetary policy meetings on Dec. 10. The bank has kept rates unchanged since Feb. 12, although forecasts call for an increase in the first quarter of 2010.
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