South Korea's second-quarter GDP expands 0.7 percent, on par with forecasts

(Reuters) - South Korea's domestic gross product expanded 0.7 percent in the second quarter of 2018 from the previous quarter, the central bank said on Thursday, slowing down due to weaker facility investment and export growth.

GDP growth declined from 1 percent in January to March, matching the median forecast of 0.7 percent from a Reuters survey of 12 economists.

The economy grew 2.9 percent from the second quarter of 2017, the Bank of Korea said, slightly below 3 percent seen in the poll.

Investment in business facilities dropped 6.6 percent after growing 3.4 percent three months earlier, while construction investment declined 1.3 percent.

Private consumption gained 0.3 percent on-quarter, logging the slowest growth in six quarters.

Exports grew 0.8 percent after jumping 4.4 percent in the first quarter.

(Reporting by Hayoung Choi, Cynthia Kim; Editing by Eric Meijer)