South Korea's growth ebbs to 3-year low as private investment falls

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea's economic growth slowed to a three-year low last quarter as private investment fell sharply, outweighing an increase in spending by the government and households.

The Bank of Korea said on Friday that Asia's fourth-largest economy expanded 1.6 per cent over a year earlier in the three months ended Sept. 30. The economy inched up 0.2 per cent from the previous quarter.

The growth was the lowest since a 1 per cent expansion in the third quarter of 2009 when South Korea started to recover from the global financial crisis.

Export-reliant South Korea is pinning its hopes for improved growth on demand from emerging markets as the United States economy remains sluggish and Europe is mired in a debt crisis.