ADB Raises South Korea Growth Forecast on Stronger Demand

The Asian Development Bank has raised its South Korea growth forecast for 2025 to 0.9% from 0.8%, citing stronger domestic consumption following government stimulus and easing export uncertainty after a tariff agreement with the United States, the finance ministry said.

The lender also lifted its 2026 growth outlook by 0.1 percentage point to 1.7%, broadly in line with projections from the OECD and the Bank of Korea.

Officials said the upgrade reflected resilient semiconductor demand and Washington’s move to cut tariffs on Korean cars in return for Seoul’s USD350bn investment pledge.

The ADB warned that weakness in the property market, global trade headwinds and geopolitical risks continue to weigh on the outlook.