The Finance Ministry dropped the term "solid" in its assessment of the nation's exports. 

In its monthly economic assessment Green Book report, the ministry said on Friday that the economy is showing a sound trend of domestic spending, but that exports and investments are declining amid lingering uncertainties over the slowdown of the semiconductor industry and trade disputes between the U.S. and China.

The report said the economy remained on the path to "recovery" for ten straight months until last September, when it began to decline.

The ministry said that while consumer spending and the government's active fiscal spending are positive factors, there are concerns over a slowing global economy amid sluggish employment prospects. 

The nation's retail sales posted growth for the third consecutive month in December, but facility investments decreased by point-four percent from a month earlier. The ministry said the economy added just more than 19-thousand jobs in January compared to last year, the lowest number since August of 2018.