SME economic outlook improves for fifth straight month: report

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, June 28 (Yonhap) -- The economic outlook for South Korea's small- and
medium-sized enterprises (SME) improved for the fifth straight month, reflecting
cautious optimism about overall business conditions, a report said Sunday.
The Small Business Health Index (SBHI), polling 1,413 SMEs nationwide, recorded a
86.8 for July. The figure was up 0.2 points from a score of 86.6 for this month,
the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business said.
After hitting 60.0 points in February, the index has moved upwards steadily,
although it is still below the break-even 100 point mark, the federation said.
A SBHI reading below 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists.
The federation added that among 20 business sectors, nine showed improved
sentiments. Businesses dealing with electronics recorded a 102.3 point score on
the index, up from 96.0 points for June.
Forecasts for chemical products, printing and publishing, and textiles also
posted gains,
The slight improvement follows signs that the local economy, rocked by the
worldwide economic crisis, may be making a comeback.
The South Korean government said recently it expects the country's gross domestic
product to contract by 1.5 percent in 2009, up from the minus 2 percent growth
predicted earlier in the year.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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