SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- The South Korean economy strengthened its recovery amid lingering uncertainties such as geopolitical risks in the Middle East and inflationary pressure, a finance ministry report said Friday.
The Ministry of Finance and Economy said in its monthly report, called Green Book, that the Asian economy recently showed signs of a strengthening recovery, powered by a sharp increase in exports and an improving domestic demand.
The ministry, however, cautioned that burdens on people's livelihood persisted due to inflationary pressure, affected by high oil prices, alongside difficult employment conditions for vulnerable groups amid ongoing uncertainties from the Middle East conflict.
While the global economy maintained moderate growth, uncertainties remained over the Middle East conflict and the U.S. tariff measures, the ministry explained.
Exports jumped 62.8 percent in July from a year earlier on strong demand for semiconductors, computers and ships.
The composite consumer sentiment index added 0.2 points from a month earlier to 106.8 in July, while the composite business sentiment index in all industries gained 0.8 points to 98.5 last month.
Retail sales, which reflect private consumption, grew 2.7 percent in June compared to the previous month.
Consumer prices rose 2.8 percent in July on a yearly basis after going up 3.2 percent in the previous month.
The number of jobs climbed 108,000 in July from a year earlier, faster than the prior month's increase of 63,000. ■
