SEOUL, June 29 (Xinhua) -- Industrial production in South Korea rose last month, keeping an upward trend for the second consecutive month despite the lackluster consumption and investment, a government report showed Friday.
Production in all industries grew 0.3 percent in May from a month earlier, after expanding 1.5 percent in the previous month, according to Statistics Korea.
Output in the mining and manufacturing industries gained 1.1 percent in the month due to growth in the auto and communications equipment that offset reduction in the semiconductor sector.
Manufacturers posted an average factory utilization rate of 73.9 percent in May, up 1.5 percentage points from the previous month.
Production in the services industry was down 0.1 percent on soft demand for the information and communications services that offset solid demand for healthcare and social welfare services.
Retail sales, which reflect private consumption, declined 1 percent in May from a month ago, keeping a downward momentum for two months in a row.
Facility investment slumped 3.2 percent last month on weak activities in the semiconductor equipment and transport equipment sectors.