April 25, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Korea’s corporate chief executives said they will maintain the current status quo on spending or move cut outlays next year, with a full third predicting an economic recovery after 2020, a local survey said on Dec. 18.

In a survey of 87 companies with over 300 employees and 186 firms with fewer than 300 workers, the Korea Employers Federation found a majority of the former planning to maintain their current capital expenditure plans in 2018 and a majority of the latter planning to cut their budget next year.

The results show an improvement in the business sentiment felt by the companies compared to a year earlier. In the same surveys conducted in 2016, the companies replied they will cut spending amid an economic slowdown, the statement said.

The respondents picked sluggish domestic demand as the biggest challenge for their businesses in the coming year, it said.

They forecast Korea’s economy to grow an average of 2.7 percent next year, lower than the 2.9 percent growth outlook predicted by the Bank of Korea and 3 percent growth by the International Monetary Fund.

By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)