Anchor: Private spending and facility investments in South Korea, which both rose in June of this year, declined in July after the government's payouts of disaster-relief money to the public ran out. The prognosis is even more grim considering the fact that the latest figures do not include the impact of the resurgence of COVID-19 infections in August.
Sam Len reports. 

Report: South Korea's industrial output edged up zero-point-one percent in July compared to the previous month. Semiconductor production dropped more than four percent, but machinery equipment and service sector output increased, resulting in the overall growth.

However the good news ends there.

Retail sales in July shrank more than six percent compared to June and declined for the first time in four months. Sales of durable goods, such as automobiles, declined more than 15 percent, while sales of semi-durable goods, such as clothes, dropped more than five percent.

The decline was largely due to the exhaustion of disaster-relief payouts made to the public earlier this year, while individual consumption tax breaks on automobile purchases were also toned down.

Making matters worse, Ahn Hyung-joon, director-general of economic trends at Statistics Korea, said a prolonged rainy season also impacted the sales of home appliances.

[Sound bite: Ahn Hyung-joon, director-general of economic trends at Statistics Korea (Korean)]
"The effects of government policies weakened, while an unusually long rainy season led to a decline in purchases of air conditioners..."

Facility investments, which increased in June, shifted to a decline in July, falling more than two percent as manufacturers produced fewer automobiles due to the reduced tax incentives.

Meanwhile, economic officials are bracing for the impact of a resurgence in COVID-19 infections in August. 

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki attended a National Assembly budget meeting after parliament reopened following a coronavirus infection and said the government has ten trillion won left to aid small businesses.

The minister added that the government is considering further measures to help businesses overcome the crisis.
Sam Len, KBS World Radio News