Latest data out of South Korea's central bank paints a grim picture for the economy.
ccording to the Bank of Korea, the country's economy grew at its slowest pace in six years in 2018.
Our Ko Roon-hee reports.
According to the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, the nation's GDP increased by two-point-seven percent last year.
This marks the slowest pace since 2012... when the economy grew by two-point-three percent.
But this year's figure did meet the BOK's earlier growth forecast made in October of last year.

The central bank attributed the slowing pace of growth to sluggish investment.
Construction and facilities investment fell by four percent and one-point-seven percent, respectively.
The Bank of Korea says economic uncertainties such as the U.S.-China trade war and the slowdown in China caused the fall.
Officials also pointed to the base effect...as investment increased in 2017, especially in the semiconductor sector.

On a brighter note, exports of goods and services expanded by four percent in 2018...thanks to continued high demand for semiconductors.

During the October-to-December period, South Korea's GDP rose one percent on-quarter.
In the fourth quarter, however, exports of goods and services decreased by two-point-two percent.
Analysts have been pointing to the decrease in semiconductors shipments...which account for around 20-percent of South Korea's overall exports.
There has been lower demand and a fall in memory chip prices...mainly due to a decrease in investment in data centers.
Ko Roon-hee, Arirang News.