SEOUL, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- Sentiment among South Korean businesses over the economic situation improved this month due to export growth, central bank data showed Wednesday.
The business sentiment index (BSI) for all industries stood at 87 in December, up 1 point from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea.
The outbound shipment continued to rise this month, offsetting the negative effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Export, which accounts for about half of South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP), jumped 20 percent for the first 20 days of this month compared to the same period of last year.
The index among manufacturers advanced 5 points over the month to 95 in December, while the reading for non-manufacturers fell 1 point to 82 this month.
Non-manufacturers, especially those focusing on offline services, were roiled by the pandemic resurgence that led the government to tighten anti-virus measures earlier this month.
In the latest tally, the country reported 5,409 more cases of COVID-19 for the past 24 hours, lifting the total number of infections to 620,938. The daily caseload rose above 5,000 in three days.
The BSI was based on a survey of 1,628 manufacturers and 1,156 non-manufacturers conducted between Dec. 14 and Dec. 21. Enditem