South Korea's business sentiment remained weak in September as local companies are more concerned about global economic uncertainties amid still fragile domestic demand, the central bank said Wednesday.
The monthly business survey index (BSI), gauging local manufacturers' assessment of current business conditions, edged up 1 point on-month to reach 81 in September after dropping 11 points the previous month, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said in a statement.
The BSI for October, measuring manufacturers' outlook on business conditions for the upcoming month, came in at 86, unchanged from a month earlier, according to the BOK.
The BSI for non-manufacturers inched up 1 point on-month to 82 in September, with the BSI for October rising 3 points to 86. A reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The index is based on a nationwide survey targeting 1,620 manufacturers and 896 non-manufacturers.
Local manufacturers picked global economic uncertainties, still fragile domestic demand and higher commodity prices as their difficulties in doing business, while non-manufacturers regarded weak domestic demand, fiercer competition and economic uncertainties as their hardship./.