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Facility investment reaches four-year high in 2025 led by semiconductor, auto sectors

Published: 02 Nov. 2025, 15:02

Vehicles move on the line at the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America in Ellabell, Georgia, on March 26. [AP/YONHAP]

Facility investment in Korea surged to a four-year high during the first nine months of this year, driven by the automotive and semiconductor sectors, data showed Sunday.

The overall facility investment index across all industries rose 4.3 percent in the January-September period from a year earlier, the largest increase since 2021, when the figure jumped 11.3 percent on-year, according to the data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

The growth was led by rising investments in automotive and chip industries.

Facility investment in the auto sector jumped 15.6 percent on-year, marking the largest increase in 25 years since 2000.

The car industry has been expanding investment to build electric vehicle production facilities and enhance future competitiveness in autonomous driving and AI technologies.

Investment in semiconductor manufacturing equipment advanced 15.7 percent, the largest growth since 2021.

Experts say that the growth was attributed to the completion of memory chip inventory adjustments and the sector entering the so-called super-cycle driven by the AI paradigm shift.

In September alone, facility investment jumped 12.7 percent, rebounding from an on-month decline a month earlier.

Yonhap