SEOUL, July 31 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's industrial output fell for the second successive month amid the real estate market slump, statistical office data showed Wednesday.
The seasonally-adjusted production index in all industries, which exclude the agriculture, livestock and fishery sector, edged down 0.1 percent in June from a month earlier after retreating 0.8 percent in the previous month, according to Statistics Korea.
Production in the construction industry shrank 0.3 percent in June on a monthly basis after tumbling 4.4 percent in the prior month, fueling worry about the property market slowdown.
Output in the public administration sector dropped 5.1 percent in June, turning downward from an increase of 2.0 percent a month ago.
Production among manufacturers rebounded 0.6 percent in June after sliding 0.6 percent in May.
Semiconductor output expanded 8.1 percent, with those for chemical products and machinery equipment rising 1.2 percent and 1.0 percent each.
The ratio of inventory to shipment in the manufacturing industry declined 5.8 percentage points from a month ago to 104.7 percent in June.
Manufacturers recorded an average capacity ratio of 73.9 percent in June, up 0.9 percentage points compared with May.
Output in the service industry climbed 0.2 percent in June on a monthly basis, after shrinking 0.8 percent in May.
The seasonally-adjusted retail sale index, which reflects private consumption, gained 1.0 percent last month, marking the first rebound in three months.
Facility investment advanced 4.3 percent in June on a monthly basis, turning upward from a decrease of 3.6 percent in May.
Completed construction diminished 0.3 percent in June after going down 4.4 percent in May.
The cyclical variation factor for leading economic indicators, which gauges the outlook for future economic situations, added 0.2 points to 100.8 in June compared to the previous month.
The reading for coincident economic indicators, which measures the current economic condition, slipped 0.1 point to 98.7 in the cited month. ■