[THE INVESTOR] South Korean manufacturers’ business outlook for the fourth quarter is still gloomy, according to a poll on Oct. 6.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce & Industry said its Business Survey Index for the October-December period came to 86, slightly up from 85 tallied in the previous quarter.

The result is based on a survey of 2,400 manufacturing companies nationwide. A reading of under 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists.

“They are still worrying about future economic directions, given a slowdown in China and a letup in the recovery of exports,” said the KCCI.

According to the KCCI survey, the sub-index for exporters came to 85 for the current quarter, down from 92 in the previous quarter.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)