South Korea’s Surprise Contraction Points to Broad Fragility

Net exports fell 2.1% from the previous quarter, reversing from a 2.1% advance in the three months through September. The quarterly result probably showed the effects of adjusting the data to real figures, and the won’s slide through the period may have inflated the costs of imports in the tally.“The fourth-quarter contraction has not derailed overall growth, and the policy backdrop points toward a cautious central bank,” said Dave Chia, an economist at Moody’s Analytics“With pressure from a weaker won in f ...