The business sentiment of South Korean manufacturers has deteriorated to a six-month low.
 
The Bank of Korea (BOK) said Wednesday that the manufactures’ business survey index (BSI) stood at 67 in December, one point less than November.
 
It marks the lowest point since June, when the nation was impacted by the deadly outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
 
The estimated BSI for January is 68, also down one point from the estimated BSI for December which was measured in November.
 
A BSI reading over 100 means that those optimistic about economic conditions outnumber pessimists. 
 
The central bank believes the BSI index fell amid growing uncertainty over the overall manufacturing sector driven by the continuous decline of international oil prices.
 
The economic sentiment index, which combines the BSI and the consumer sentiment index, stood at 90, down three points from November.