Anchor: The Bank of Korea announced that South Korea’s economy shrank one-point-four percent in the first quarter of 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak. However, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki warns that the country could see a bigger impact on the economy in quarter two.
Emma Kalka has more. 

Report: The Bank of Korea(BOK) said Thursday that South Korea's economy shrank one-point-four percent in the first quarter due to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It marks the first on-quarter contraction since the fourth quarter of 2008, when the economy shrank three-point-three percent.  

From a year earlier, the economy grew one-point-three percent, marking the weakest on-year gain since the third quarter in 2009, when it marked point-nine percent growth. 

Private consumption plunged six-point-four percent on-quarter in the first quarter, posting the largest drop since the first quarter of 1998, when it slipped 13-point-eight percent.

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said that, unfortunately, things would likely get worse with the outbreak expected to have a bigger impact on the nation’s real economy and employment in the second quarter.

Hong presented the grim outlook in his opening remarks for a meeting of economy-related ministers on Thursday, shortly after the BOK announcement.

Hong assessed that the recovery trend seen briefly since late last year in exports and investment somewhat offset the economic shock of the coronavirus outbreak in the first quarter. 

However, he projected a larger impact on the real economy and employment in the second quarter, vowing all-out efforts to ride out the downside risks during that time. Additionally, Hong said the country plans to post a recovery in consumption and exports in the second half of the year.
Emma Kalka, KBS World Radio News