SMEs' May Business Outlook Index at 79.2... Down 1.8 Points from Previous Month

Decline for Two Consecutive Months After Rising in March
Down 4.6 Points Compared to Same Month Last Year

The business outlook index for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in May fell by 1.8 points from the previous month to 79.2.

Photo by Korea Federation of SMEs

The Korea Federation of SMEs announced the results of the "May 2024 SME Business Outlook Survey," conducted from April 15 to 22 with 2,078 SMEs, on the 29th.

The business outlook index for May was 79.2, showing a decline for two consecutive months after an upward trend in March. Compared to the same month last year, it dropped by 4.6 points.

The manufacturing sector's business outlook for May was 83.2, down 3.0 points from the previous month, while the non-manufacturing sector fell by 1.4 points to 77.4. Construction (76.9) decreased by 4.2 points, and services (77.5) dropped by 0.8 points.

By industry, within manufacturing, six sectors showed an increase compared to the previous month, including Industrial Machinery and Equipment Repair (9.4 points), Textile Products (7.1 points), and Rubber and Plastic Products (5.4 points). Conversely, 17 sectors declined, such as Chemicals and Chemical Products (11.9 points), Food Products (9.2 points), and Medical Substances and Pharmaceuticals (7.1 points). In the service sector, three industries including Accommodation and Food Services (7.8 points) and Transportation (1.7 points) rose, while seven sectors including Real Estate (7.3 points) and Publishing, Video, Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Information Services (2.8 points) fell.

Comparing the May business outlook index with the average values for the same month over the past three years by category, raw materials and facilities in manufacturing showed improvement, while other categories are expected to worsen compared to the previous three-year average.

The main management difficulties for SMEs in April were dominated by sluggish domestic demand (62.2%). This was followed by rising labor costs (49.1%), excessive competition among companies (35.5%), and rising raw material prices (34.7%).

The average operating rate of small and medium manufacturing enterprises in March was 72.1%, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous month but down 0.5 percentage points compared to the same month last year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.