South Korea's industrial output post the sharpest drop in January from a year earlier, the South Korean government said on Monday.

According to a report by the National Statistical Office (NSO), production in the mining and manufacturing sectors decreased by 25.6 percent in January from a year earlier. The industrial output declined 18.7 percent in December last year from the same period in 2007.

The industrial output decreased in January was the worst ever since related data began to be compiled in January 1970.

(Xinhua News Agency March 2, 2009)