Small businesses remain pessimistic about economy: survey

SEOUL, Dec. 21 (Yonhap) -- A majority of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Korea remain pessimistic about next year's outlook, raising fears they may refrain from hiring and making investments, a report showed Sunday.
According to the report compiled by a think tank of the Industrial Bank of Korea,
the business survey index (BSI) for SMEs stood at 76.1 for next year. A BSI
reading of less than 100 means pessimists outnumber optimists. The survey was
conducted on 2,514 smaller companies from Nov. 3-18.
Of those surveyed, 49.8 percent said that business conditions for this year have
worsened, with 34.4 percent predicting a further downturn for next year, the
report showed.
The pessimistic view comes as South Korea is struggling to generate jobs in the
face of the fast-slumping local economy. Earlier, Finance Minister Kang Man-soo
said that the government's top priority for next year is to help smaller
companies tide over the ongoing economic crisis and stave off job losses.
The nation's jobless rate stood at 3.1 percent in November with job creation
falling to a 5-year low amid a bleak economic outlook. The economy generated
78,000 new jobs last month, far less than the government target of 200,000.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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