The South Korean economy topped a 0.1- percent growth in the first quarter of 2009 on the back of the government's fiscal spending and construction investment, the central bank said Friday.
While the on-quarter growth was equal to the previous forecast of the bank, the on-year growth of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) was minus 4.2 percent in the first quarter, compared with the earlier estimate of a 4.3 percent contraction, the Bank of Korea (BOK) said.
The positive quarterly growth in the first quarter can be attributed to the government's fiscal spending and investment in the construction sector, a high-level official at the BOK said.
South Korea's parliament approved an extra budget worth 28.4 trillion won (22.7 billion U.S. dollars) earlier in April, along with the government's frontloading over 45 percent of the regular annual budget.
In addition, while the nation's facility investment plunged 11. 2 percent, construction investment came in at an expansion of 5.2 percent.
The figure came amid disputes ongoing over whether the South Korean economy may bottom out in the year.
While the financial market condition and business, consumer sentiment has improved on hopes of economic recovery, various indicators of the real economy, such as facility investment, remain sluggish, analysts said.
The government also sent a cautious message on Thursday, saying that the South Korean economy may be showing signs of recovery, but it remains in a slump as domestic demand and exports are not making upturns, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency said.
The BOK's prediction on the South Korean economy for 2009 remains at a 2.4 percent contraction, due to falling exports and sluggish domestic demand.