Seoul:The South Korean economy expanded by 1 percent in the third quarter from the previous quarter, primarily due to robust exports and investment, as indicated by the central bank's data released on Tuesday. The real gross domestic product (GDP) of South Korea, a crucial indicator of economic growth, increased by 1 percent during the July-September period compared to the preceding three months, based on preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

According to Yonhap News Agency, this third-quarter growth rate represents an improvement from the 0.6 percent expansion observed in the previous quarter and surpasses the BOK's earlier forecast of a 0.3 percent growth made in August.

In 2025, Asia's fourth-largest economy grew by 1 percent despite challenges like weak facility investment and a downturn in the construction sector. The growth was propelled by an artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure boom and the ensuing global demand for semiconductors, which led to a 1.8 percent growth in the first quarter of 2026. This marked the strongest quarterly growth since the third quarter of 2020, when the economy expanded by 2.2 percent.