Business Sentiment in Gwangju and Jeonnam Slightly Eases in March

CBSI Rises by 4.3 Points in Manufacturing and 11.4 Points in Non-Manufacturing
Manufacturing Business Conditions Fall by 4 Points, Non-Manufacturing Improves
Sluggish Domestic Demand Remains a Major Management Challenge

Bank of Korea Gwangju Jeonnam Headquarters.

Companies in the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions reported a slight improvement in business sentiment compared to the previous month.

On the 31st, the Gwangju-Jeonnam branch of the Bank of Korea announced the results of its March business sentiment survey for 601 companies located in Gwangju and Jeonnam. The manufacturing Business Survey Index (CBSI) recorded 90.8, up 4.3 points from the previous month. The outlook CBSI for the following month was 90.2, up 1.4 points from the previous month.

The CBSI is a sentiment indicator calculated using the main indices (five for manufacturing, four for non-manufacturing) from the Business Survey Index (BSI). With the long-term average (January 2003 to December 2024) set as the baseline of 100, a value above 100 indicates optimism compared to the long-term average, while a value below 100 indicates pessimism.

The number of companies that responded to this survey by the Gwangju-Jeonnam branch of the Bank of Korea was 545 (261 manufacturing, 284 non-manufacturing).

Looking at the manufacturing business conditions BSI in the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions, this month's actual performance was 57, down 4 points from the previous month, and the outlook for next month was 58, down 7 points from the previous month. This month's actual performance (production BIS) was 83, up 11 points from the previous month, and the outlook for next month was 83, up 3 points from the previous month. During the same period, actual performance was 76, up 6 points from the previous month, and the outlook for next month was 74, up 2 points from the previous month.

The non-manufacturing CBSI in the Gwangju and Jeonnam regions was 90.2, up 11.4 points from the previous month, and the outlook CBSI for next month was 89.7, up 5.6 points from the previous month.

Looking at the business conditions BSI, this month's actual performance was 63, up 9 points from the previous month, and the outlook for next month was 66, up 6 points from the previous month. Similarly, sales performance during the same period was 65, up 7 points from the previous month, and the outlook for next month was 67, up 8 points from the previous month. For non-manufacturing, this month's financial conditions were 72, up 7 points from the previous month, and the outlook for next month was 72, up 3 points from the previous month.

For manufacturing, major management difficulties compared to the previous month included uncertain economic conditions, sluggish domestic demand (+2.7%p), and sluggish exports (+5.6%p). For non-manufacturing, sluggish domestic demand (+6.1%p), labor shortages and rising labor costs, and uncertain economic conditions were cited as major challenges.

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