South Korea's industrial output edged down 0.5 percent in May from a month earlier due in part to decreased oil refining, government data showed Friday.
The data compiled by Statistics Korea showed oil refining fell 14 percent in May from a month earlier, while production in the service sector increased 0.1 percent on-month.
From a year earlier, industrial output rose 1 percent.
Retail sales rose 0.9 percent in May from a month earlier due to increased sales of clothing and electronic goods. Retail numbers gained 3.4 percent on-year last month.
Facility investment fell 8.2 percent last month from April due to decreased imports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment and foreign passenger cars.
South Korean companies imported semiconductor manufacturing equipment worth US$34 million in May, down from $42 million in April. The May figure also marked a sharp decline from $74.7 million in May 2018.
Semiconductors are a key export product for South Korea, home to Samsung Electronics, the world's largest memory chip maker, and its smaller rival SK hynix. (Yonhap)