SEOUL: South Korea's industrial output in September edged up from a month earlier but falling production of key export items signalled overall weakness, government data showed Thursday.
Production in mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries grew 0.1 percent last month, a reversal from a 3.9 percent shrinkage in August.
Output in manufacturing remained unchanged from the previous month, with falls in key export items such as semiconductors and autos offset by growth in machinery equipment.
Output of semiconductors and parts fell 4.4 percent and autos slumped 5.8 percent. Exports of memory chips to China were sluggish while auto output was hit by labour strikes.
"As industrial output and domestic demand remain sluggish, exports are also running out of steam," South Korea's finance minister Choi Kyung-Hwan said at a meeting of economic ministers.
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