S. Korea to miss 2005 growth target

S. Korea to miss 2005 growth target

SEOUL: South Korea is likely to miss its 2005 target of five
percent economic growth because of weak consumption and falling
overseas demand, the finance minister said on Thursday.

"It will be difficult for the economy to achieve the five
percent growth target," Han Duck-Soo, the finance and economy
minister, told the National Assembly.

It was the first time that the country's economic czar had
said that the 2005 economic growth rate would fall short of the
government's projection.

"Hopes for a strong recovery for this year following an
economic slowdown that began in March 2004 have began to fade due
to a weaker-than-expected recovery in domestic consumption and
slowing overseas demand," he said. -- AFP