Statistics Korea on July 31 said in a report on June industrial activity that the production index for all sectors reached 113.8, up 1.2% from May. Shown are completed cars ready for export at the shipyard of Hyundai Motor's plant in Ulsan. (Hyundai Motor Group)

By Aisylu Akhmetzianova

Industrial production last month rebounded for the first time in three months thanks to stronger performances by semiconductors and cars.

Statistics Korea on July 31 said in a report on June industrial activity that the production index for all sectors was 113.8 for the month, up 1.2% from May and 0.8% higher year on year.

The rebound came after overall industrial output shrank 0.7% in April (113.8) and 1.1% in May (112.5).

Production in mining rose 1.6% from May thanks to output growth in semiconductors (6.6%) and cars (4.2%).

Thanks to increasing sales of clothing (4.1%) and cosmetics (0.3%), consumer spending also rose 0.5% from May, its first rise in four months.

Facility investment, however, decreased 3.7% over the period mainly due to transportation equipment, which fell 14.8% for its fourth straight month of decline since a dip of 0.5% in March.

The cyclical component of the coincident composite index, a gauge of economic health, fell a tenth of a percentage point from the previous month, but the leading composite index, a predictor of economic trends, rose two-tenths of a point.

aisylu@korea.kr