Seoul: South Korea's consumer sentiment rose to an eight-year high in November, buoyed by the country's tariff agreement with the United States and stronger-than-expected quarterly economic growth, the central bank said Tuesday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the composite consumer sentiment index (CCSI) climbed to 112.4 this month, up 2.6 points from October, based on a survey by the Bank of Korea (BOK). This marks the highest reading since November 2017 and the first increase in three months.

The index had seen a rise for five consecutive months through August, driven by solid exports and optimism over the government's supplementary budget. It then declined over the following two months due to concerns about a potential export slowdown caused by the U.S. tariff scheme and a slump in the construction sector. A reading above 100 indicates that optimists outnumber pessimists, while a figure below 100 signals the opposite.

"The increase was mainly attributable to the tariff agreement with the U.S. and the third-quarter gross domestic product growth exceeding expectations," a BOK official said. After prolonged negotiations over the Donald Trump administration's aggressive tariff policies, Seoul and Washington finalized a deal and released a joint fact sheet earlier this month. This agreement outlines South Korea's US$350 billion investment plans in the U.S., in exchange for a reduction of U.S. tariffs from 25 percent to 15 percent.

In the July-September period, real gross domestic product (GDP), a key gauge of economic growth, rose 1.2 percent from the previous quarter, marking the fastest quarterly expansion since the first quarter of 2024, according to the BOK data. It also beat the BOK's expectation of a 1.1 percent gain.