SEOUL, KOREA - Korea's state-run economic think tank and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development announced optimistic forecasts for 2014.

 

The Korea Development Institute on November 19 put out its forecast for the second half of 2013 and said the next year will see the economic growth rate rise to 3.7 percent. This is 0.1 percentage point higher than its May projection. This figure is slightly lower than those of the government (3.9%) and the Bank of Korea (3.8%), but identical to that of the International Monetary Fund.

 

Cho Dong-cheol, senior researcher at the Korea Development Institute, said, "Lately the economy is showing signs of gradual recovery. If the stimulus measures taken by the government take effect as expected, the economy can make an additional growth of 0.3 percentage point to 4.0 percent." He further said that the private-sector consumption will recover slowly next year, with exports continuing their rapid growth. As for the growth rate for investment in plants and equipment, he predicted, it would turn to a positive realm of 8.4 percent from -2.5 percent. Next year's current account surplus would be in the range of US$51 billion, he estimated.

 

Meanwhile, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said on the same day Korea's 2014 economic growth rate would be 3.8 percent. Although this is slightly lower than that announced in May (4.0%), it saw the economy would maintain the current potential growth rate. An official of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said, "This is not as big a cut as its world economic growth rate to 3.6 percent from 4.0 percent."