ING: Growth Driven by South Korean Semiconductors May Weaken

Golden Ten Data reported on April 1 that Min Joo Kang, an economist at ING, stated that South Korea's semiconductor-driven economic growth might begin to slow from the second quarter. Although chip manufacturers have not yet faced significant shortages of raw materials due to the Middle East conflict, inventories of key inputs could be depleted over the next few quarters. "If supply disruptions persist, negative impacts may become apparent in the second half of 2026," she added. She also noted that even if the conflict ends within a few weeks, these disruptions could still restrain manufacturing activity and increase cost pressures. ING has lowered South Korea's GDP growth forecasts for the second and third quarters and revised its 2026 GDP growth expectation from the previous 2.2% down to 2.0%.