S. Korea’s consumer sentiment improves in October

SEOUL, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) — South Korea’s consumer sentiment improved in October owing to interest rate cut and slower inflation, central bank data showed Wednesday.
The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI), which gauges the sentiment of consumers over economic situation, gained 1.7 points over the month to 101.7 in October after dipping 2.8 points in August and 0.8 points in September, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The rebound came after the BOK lowered its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25 percent earlier this month.
Consumer prices rose 1.6 percent in September from a year earlier, falling below the BOK’s mid-term inflation target of 2 percent in three and a half years since March 2021.
The sub-index for consumption expenditure outlook increased one point, while indices for current economic situation and economic outlook climbed by the same extent of two points.
Inflation expectations, which measure outlook among consumers over headline inflation for the next 12 months, stood unchanged at 2.8 percent in October compared to the previous month.
After peaking at 4.7 percent in July 2022, inflation expectations had roughly been on the decline.
The results were based on a survey of 2,280 households conducted from Oct. 8 to 16. ■