Economic sentiment surges on chip-led export recovery

[Graphics by Song Ji-yoon]

Recent data found that South Korea‘s economic sentiment index was at its highest level in 32 months amid a rebound in semiconductor exports.

The news sentiment index (NSI), released by the Bank of Korea as a measure of the economic sentiment in Korea based on daily analysis of online news articles, hit 115.68 as of Monday. It was the index’s highest point since August 21st, 2021, when it stood at 115.91, and it has steadily climbed since the beginning of 2024 after dipping below the 100 mark to 96.21 at the end of 2023.

The NSI gauges economic sentiment based on media coverage of economic topics, with a figure of 100 and higher indicating that positive expectations toward the national economy outweigh negative views. The months-long uptick in the index has been driven by a rebound in exports that has been spearheaded by the semiconductor sector.