[NEWSMP] A survey of industry experts conducted by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET) showed that sentiment toward the bio-health industry remained positive.
The September Professional Survey Index (PSI) for business conditions came in at 100, well below the previous month’s forecast. However, the October outlook remained strongly positive at 124, indicating overwhelmingly upbeat expectations.
According to the KIET’s report, Professional Survey Index on Industrial Conditions (Current Conditions in September 2026 and Outlook for October), released on September 20, most PSI indicators for the bio-health industry recorded triple-digit readings for both current conditions in September and the outlook for October.
The PSI is a quantitative index based on a monthly survey that asks a panel of experts—primarily professionals from domestic financial institutions, associations, organizations, and research institutes—to assess business conditions in major manufacturing sectors.
The survey offers three response options: △ improved (expanded) from the previous month, △ unchanged from the previous month, and △ worsened (decreased) from the previous month. The responses are then converted into an index ranging from 0 to 200.
Accordingly, with 100 indicating no change from the previous month, a reading closer to 200 means that assessments of improvement from the previous month predominated, while a reading closer to 0 means that assessments of a slowdown from the previous month predominated.
According to the report, the September PSI for current business conditions stood at 100, indicating a balance between positive and negative assessments. This was well below the August forecast of 124 for September.
In particular, the PSI for domestic demand came in at 114, above the previous forecast of 110, while the production PSI rose to 124, also exceeding the previous month’s forecast of 119.
The export and investment PSIs, both of which had been forecast at 143 a month earlier amid overwhelmingly positive sentiment, came in at 119 and 124, respectively. Although both fell short of their forecasts, positive assessments still prevailed.
By contrast, the profitability PSI, which had been forecast at 119 despite looming large-scale drug price cuts, came in at just 95, indicating that negative assessments outweighed positive ones.
The outlook for October is broadly positive. The business conditions PSI remained at 124 for the second consecutive month, while domestic demand PSI rose to 114. The export PSI declined to 129 but continued to indicate overwhelmingly positive sentiment.
The production and investment PSIs both stood at 124, with positive assessments prevailing, while the profitability PSI also came in at 114, indicating a favorable outlook.
According to the report, experts continued to cite exports as the main factor behind their positive assessment of business conditions in the bio-health industry.
Continued growth in pharmaceutical exports has improved business performance, while global demand continues to expand. In addition, experts expect corporate performance and technology transfers to trend upward in the fourth quarter.
However, some experts noted that a particular company is driving the industry as a whole and projected that profitability could decline due to unfavorable exchange-rate movements.
