SEOUL, June 11 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's corporate revenue rebounded last year due mainly to solid global demand for locally-made semiconductors, central bank data showed Wednesday.
Revenue for 13,610 manufacturers and 20,557 non-manufacturers subject to external audit, excluding financial firms, gained 4.2 percent in 2024 from a year earlier after reducing 2.0 percent in the previous year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
Sales by manufacturers expanded 5.2 percent on surging demand for semiconductors and ships, while revenue for non-manufacturers grew 3.0 percent last year.
Corporate profitability improved. The ratio of operating profit to revenue advanced to 5.4 percent in 2024 from 3.8 percent in the previous year.
The ratio for manufacturers went up from 3.3 percent to 5.6 percent in the cited period, while the reading for non-manufacturers increased from 4.4 percent to 5.1 percent.
The interest coverage ratio, which measures a company's ability to pay interest expenses with operating profit, came to 298.9 percent in 2024, up from 221.1 percent in the prior year.
The debt-to-equity ratio for local companies stood at 101.9 percent last year, slightly down from 102.0 percent a year earlier. ■
