Even more pessimistic was the confidence level in business leaders, or CEOs, which came in at 24 percent, ranking 25th and just ahead of Poland (23 percent), France (23 percent), and Japan (18 percent). (image: KobizMedia/ Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Feb. 9 (Korea Bizwire) – Perhaps in line with recent allegations outlining the role of major South Korean conglomerates in the current political scandal, a survey by Edelman Korea revealed that the level of confidence in business among Koreans ranked the lowest among 28 key global players that included the U.S., China, and Japan.
According to the study, which was based on 33,000 individuals from the 28 countries, the Korean confidence rate was 29 percent, behind Poland (40 percent), Russia (39 percent), and Hong Kong (34 percent).
The rate was a drop of 4 percent from 2016, and fell far short of the average of the 28 countries at 52 percent. Indonesia topped the list at 76 percent, followed by India (74 percent), Mexico (67 percent), China (67 percent), the UAE (64 percent), and Colombia (64 percent).
Even more pessimistic was the confidence level in business leaders, or CEOs, which came in at 24 percent, ranking 25th and just ahead of Poland (23 percent), France (23 percent), and Japan (18 percent).
The average was 37 percent for all countries, and was the highest for India (70 percent), Mexico (61 percent), the UAE (55 percent), South Africa (52 percent), and Indonesia (51 percent).
Nonetheless, 69 percent of South Korean participants believed there were ways for businesses to boost the numbers, responding that corporations “can both create profits and help improve economic and social conditions.”
“Every year, we see globally that the public confidence in society at large is declining,” said Jang Sung-bin, managing director at Edelman Korea. “But the results in South Korea show that this distrust has reached a critical level.”
Meanwhile, the level of confidence in the government was 28 percent for South Korea, ranking 22nd, while the rates for media and NGOs were at 40 percent (17th) and 56 percent (16th), respectively.
A total of 1,150 South Koreans, including 200 opinion leaders, took part in the survey. Opinion leaders, aged from 25 to 64, came from the top 25 percent income households with at least a college degree and a regular subscription to some form of news media.
By Joseph Shin (jss539@koreabizwire.com)
