S.Korea's consumer confidence falls for 3 months

Confidence among South Korean consumers over economic conditions declined for three straight months, indicating a sluggish private consumption that has eased negative impact from export slump, central bank data showed Thursday.

The composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) stood at 98 in February, down 2 points from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). It marked the third consecutive month of fall and was the lowest in eight months.

The figure below 100 means that consumers' assessment on current economic conditions was pessimistic compared with a long-run average tallied between 2003 and 2015.

Pessimistic view on the economy came as exports, which account for about half of the economy, posted the biggest monthly decline in more than six years in January. The country's exports are expected to record a double-digit reduction in February.

Private consumption bolstered the lackluster economy thanks to record-low interest rates and the government's measures such as consumption tax cuts for cars.

The continued pessimism among consumers heralded a private consumption to become sluggish along with the falling exports.

Sub-indices showed a bleak picture. The prospective economic situations index shrank 3 points from a month earlier to 75 in February, marking the lowest in almost seven years. The index gauges economic outlook over the next six months.

The current economic conditions index slid 3 points from the previous month to 65 in February, the lowest in seven months.

The expected headline inflation, which measures outlook for consumer price inflation in the next 12 months, was 2.5 percent in February, having made no change for seven months in a row. Endite