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Seoul • South Korea lowered its growth outlook for 2016 citing a weak recovery in exports.
The ministry of finance said Wednesday that Asia's fourth-largest economy will expand 3.1 percent. It previously forecast 3.3 percent growth.
It would still be an improvement from 2015's forecast growth of 2.7 percent. This year's growth was much slower than the ministry's forecast of 3.8 percent, due to slumping exports and a deadly respiratory syndrome that battered consumption.
Next year, South Korea's government plans to introduce policies to boost exports, consumption and birth rates.
It will increase assistance to consumer products companies with big demand from China, such as cosmetics, food and baby products.
The country's traditional export heavyweights, mainly shipbuilders, automakers and electronics companies, had a tough year in 2015.