[THE INVESTOR] A majority of South Korean companies operating in China are less optimistic about business conditions in the fourth-quarter of this year, as the Chinese economy is cooling amid a trade spat with the US, a survey showed on Oct. 21.

According to the survey of 218 manufacturers, conducted by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET), their business survey index (BSI) stood at 103 for the October-December period, down 12 from a quarter ago.

A Lotte Mart store in China

A BSI reading above 100 means optimists outnumber pessimists.

The BSI for sales outlook was also over 100, coming in at 117, down 8 from a quarter ago, the survey showed.

By sector, the electronics, electric and retail sectors painted a gloomy picture for the fourth quarter, while automaking and textile segments remained bullish over business conditions in China, it showed.

Last week, China reported its weakest quarterly growth since the first quarter of 2009 during the global financial crisis.

China‘s economic growth sank to 6.5 percent on-year in the third quarter, compared with the previous quarter’s 6.7 percent.

By Park Ga-young and newswires (gypark@heraldcorp.com)