SEOUL, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's consumer sentiment improved for the second consecutive month despite lingering economic uncertainties, central bank data showed Thursday.
The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI), which gauges the sentiment of consumers over economic situation, gained 4.0 points from a month earlier to 95.2 in February after climbing 3.0 points in the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The improvement followed a nosedive of 12.5 points in December last year when South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared a short-lived emergency martial law that was revoked by the National Assembly.
Yoon was arrested and put on trial in custody for insurrection and other charges.
The Asian economy was faced with uncertainties both at home and abroad, such as sluggish domestic demand and the U.S. import tariffs.
The sub-index for current economic situation increased 4 points to 55 in February compared to the previous month, while the index for economic outlook soared 8 points to 73.
Inflation expectations, which measure the outlook among consumers over headline inflation for the next 12 months, fell 0.1 percentage point over the month to 2.7 percent in February.
After peaking at 4.7 percent in July 2022, the inflation expectations had roughly been on the decline.
The results were based on a survey of 2,321 households conducted from Feb. 6 to 13. ■
