South Korea's industrial output dropped for the second consecutive month in October on a sharp drop in mobile devices and cars, government data showed Wednesday.

Production in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries fell 1.6 percent last month from a year ago, according to the data by Statistics Korea.

The figure continued its minus growth for two months in a row, following a 1.7 percent on-year drop in the previous month.

From a month earlier, industrial output also backtracked 1.7 percent in October, falling into negative terrain from a 0.6 percent gain in September.

Production in the service sector added 2.5 percent last month from a year earlier, with a 0.2 percent on-month drop.

For all industries, output moved up 2 percent on-year in October but retreated 0.4 percent from a month earlier, the data said.

The statistics agency attributed the decline in industrial output to sluggish demand for mobile phones and cars, both of which are the country's key industrial items, amid a protracted slump in the country's exports.

Output of wireless devices, including mobile handsets, plunged 41.7 percent last month due to the worldwide recalls and the production halt of Samsung Electronics Co.'s Galaxy Note 7, citing battery problems.

At the same time, automobile production retreated 8.5 percent in October in the aftermath of a series of strikes at major carmakers, including industry leader Hyundai Motor Co., and the end of the government-led excise tax cut that had lasted for nearly a year until June this year.

The South Korean government had run the excise tax-cut scheme on passenger cars since October last year in a bid to boost domestic demand and prop up Asia's fourth-largest economy.

"The manufacturing sector is closely linked with exports.

Faltering exports pull down the factory utilization rate in the first place, lowering industrial output and facility investment," said Eo Woon-sun, director of the short-term industrial statistics division at Statistics Korea. "As a result, the average factory operation rate fell 1.3 percentage points to 70.3 percent last month and facility investment also contracted 4.9 percent from a year earlier."

The South Korean economy saw its January-October exports dip 8 percent, with the 2015 outbound shipments also logging an 8 percent drop, due mainly to a slowdown in global trade.

Private consumption, on the other hand, rose 2.3 percent last month from a year earlier and gained a 21-year high of 5.2 percent from a month ago to counterbalance the sluggish production side.

"The 'Korea Sale Festa' played a big role in the sharp on-month gain in consumption," said the statistics official. "Such government-initiated stimulus policies have lent big support to prop up the economy to a large extent so far."

The event was designed to tie up the retail industry with the tourism and cultural sectors in line with the major Chinese holiday season, with some 200 retailers offering discounts and promotions to attract local and foreign shoppers. (Yonhap)