The Asia Development Bank(ADB) has forecast South Korea’s economic growth this year to wane due to weaker global demand amid a slump in key markets.

Yothin Jinjarak, a senior economist at the ADB, made the assessment when he met with South Korean reporters in Manila on Tuesday.

He said advanced countries are clearly seeing a slowdown as he projected that U.S. and European economies will grow less than one percent in 2023.

With half of South Korea's exports targeting advanced economies, the economist said the ADB believes weaker demand from those markets will lead to South Korea’s sluggish performance this year.

He specifically noted that “global demand for semiconductors, one of South Korea's key exports, has been particularly weak.”

Earlier this month, the ADB projected that South Korea’s economy would post growth of one-point-five percent this year, the same as the outlook released by the International Monetary Fund last week.

It is, however, one-tenth of a percentage point lower than the figures from the South Korean government and central bank as well as the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.