Business sentiment in South Korea declined for the first time in three months in January as weaker performance in service and other nonmanufacturing sectors offset strong manufacturing exports led by semiconductors.

The Bank of Korea's Business Survey and Economic Sentiment Index for January, released on Tuesday, showed that South Korea's Composite Business Sentiment Index(CBSI) fell zero-point-two points from the previous month to 94.

The metric marked the first drop since October after two straight months of growth.

A reading below 100 indicates that pessimists outnumber optimists.

The CBSI in the manufacturing sector rose two-point-eight points from the previous month to 97-point-five in January, and that in nonmanufacturing industries, including restaurants, wholesale and retail, slipped two-point-one points to 91-point-seven.