SMEs' September Business Outlook Rises by 4.8 Points... Exports and Domestic Sales Increase Together

Korea Federation of SMEs Releases
"September Business Outlook Survey for SMEs"

The business outlook for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in September has improved across both the manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors. Key indicators, such as exports and domestic sales, also saw a concerted increase, fueling optimism for economic recovery.

On August 30, the Korea Federation of SMEs announced the results of the "September 2026 Business Outlook Survey for SMEs." The survey was conducted from August 12 to August 19, targeting 3,060 SMEs (1,467 in manufacturing and 1,593 in non-manufacturing sectors).

The Small Business Health Index (SBHI) for the September business outlook rose by 4.8 points from the previous month to 84.8. The index for manufacturing increased by 7.0 points to 87.1, while that for non-manufacturing climbed by 3.7 points to 83.7, both compared to the previous month.

By industry, the manufacturing sector saw the outlook index rise across 19 categories, led by non-metallic mineral products (from 64.0 to 81.2) and beverages (from 91.5 to 107.5), compared to the previous month. Meanwhile, four industries, including industrial machinery and equipment repair (from 91.0 to 76.2) and leather, bags, and footwear (from 82.6 to 75.0), recorded a decline.

Exterior view of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business. Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business

In the non-manufacturing sector, construction (from 71.1 to 65.7) declined, while the service industry (from 81.8 to 87.3) improved. Among service industries, arts, sports, and leisure-related services surged by 22.8 points (from 70.9 to 93.7), and wholesale and retail increased by 7.2 points (from 78.9 to 86.1) from the previous month, with eight service industries seeing an improvement. Conversely, two sectors, transportation (from 85.4 to 82.7) and accommodation and food services (from 87.4 to 86.3), experienced a decrease.

For all industries, outlooks for exports (from 87.3 to 94.2), domestic sales (from 79.7 to 83.8), operating profit (from 77.6 to 81.5), and funding conditions (from 79.9 to 81.8) all improved. Employment, which statistically trends inversely, is also projected to improve, rising from 95.5 to 94.8, compared to the previous month.

The most significant management challenge for SMEs in August was "sluggish sales" (52.4%). This was followed by "rising raw material prices" (41.0%), "intensified competition among companies" (31.4%), and "increased labor costs" (27.8%).

The average operating rate for small and medium-sized manufacturers stood at 75.2% in July, a decrease of 0.7 percentage points from the previous month. By company size, small enterprises declined by 0.4 percentage points to 71.2%, while medium-sized enterprises fell by 0.8 percentage points to 77.6%, both compared to the previous month. By business type, general manufacturing dropped by 0.8 percentage points to 75.2%, and innovative manufacturing fell by 0.3 percentage points to 75.3%, also compared to the previous month.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.