Honam Statistics Office Releases Q1 Economic Trends
Gwangju: Manufacturing Up, Construction and Employment Down
Jeonnam: Exports Fall, Youth Outflow Noticeable
Jeonbuk: Construction Only Sector Growing, Others Decline
In the first quarter of 2025, the Honam region's economy showed signs of recovery in industrial production, but recorded an overall decline in construction, exports, employment, and population sectors. Persistent outflow of young people, a sharp drop in construction orders, and declining employment rates were common across all three areas. Certain manufacturing sectors, such as electrical equipment and auto parts, are barely sustaining the regional economy.
According to the "2025 Q1 Regional Economic Trends" released by the Honam Regional Statistics Office on May 13, all three cities and provinces?Gwangju, Jeonnam, and Jeonbuk?saw only slight increases or minor decreases in mining and manufacturing production compared to the same period last year. However, clear downward trends were observed in construction orders, exports, employment rates, and net population migration indicators.
◇ Gwangju: Production Up, Consumption Recovering... Construction, Employment, and Population Weak
The mining and manufacturing production index in Gwangju rose by 6.0% year-on-year. The main drivers were increases in the production of electrical equipment (22.2%), tobacco (37.9%), and fabricated metal products (12.4%). In contrast, food products (-11.0%) and other machinery and equipment (-6.1%) continued to perform poorly.
Service industry production fell by 1.7%, affected by declines in arts, sports, and leisure (-28.2%), finance and insurance (-3.1%), and information and communications (-6.0%). On the other hand, real estate (3.3%) and health and social welfare (1.4%) saw slight increases.
Retail sales, a key consumption indicator, increased by 1.8%. Specialty retail stores (3.4%) and automobile and fuel retailers (4.2%) led the growth, while large discount stores (-6.6%) and department stores (-4.6%) declined.
Construction orders amounted to 138.6 billion won, down 88.9% from a year earlier. The decisive factor was a 94.8% plunge in private building orders. Exports fell by 10.8% to $3.81 billion. Exports of processors and controllers (-15.5%), passenger cars (-7.1%), and storage batteries (-69.1%) decreased, while wired telecommunications equipment (635.9%) and vehicle parts (51.9%) increased.
The employment rate dropped by 1.2 percentage points, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.3 percentage points. Net migration was -4,945 people, with notable outflows among those in their 20s (-1,795 people) and 30s (-894 people).
◇ Jeonnam: Exports and Employment Weak... Relatively Low Net Population Outflow
Mining and manufacturing production in Jeonnam decreased by 0.9%, and service industry production also declined by 1.6%. Construction orders dropped by 63.9%, marking a third consecutive quarter of decline. Exports fell by 19.3%, largely due to weak exports of diesel (-30.9%) and petroleum products (-29.2%). In contrast, exports of passenger cars (5.4%) and non-ferrous metals (31.9%) increased.
Retail sales rose by 0.5%, but the recovery was not significant. Consumer prices increased by 2.2%, driven by higher transportation and dining-out costs.
The employment rate fell by 0.5 percentage points, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.5 percentage points. Net population outflow was 247 people, the lowest among the three regions, but the outflow of people in their 20s was the highest at 2,072.
◇ Jeonbuk: Only Construction Orders Increase... Most Indicators Decline
Jeonbuk was the only region among the three to see an increase in construction orders, which rose by 58.3% year-on-year, driven by increased building construction. However, both mining and manufacturing production (-1.0%) and service industry production (-1.1%) declined. Exports also decreased by 4.0%.
The employment rate fell by 0.8 percentage points, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.8 percentage points. Net population outflow was 1,980 people, the second highest after Gwangju, with especially notable outflows among those in their teens (-396 people) and 20s (-1,992 people). Consumer prices rose by 2.3%, mainly due to higher food and lodging costs.
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