South Korea's growth hits 3-year low

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's economic growth slowed to a three-year low last quarter as private investment fell sharply, outweighing an increase in spending by the government and households.

The Bank of Korea said Friday that Asia's fourth-largest economy expanded 1.6 percent over a year earlier in the three months ended Sept. 30. The economy inched up 0.2 percent from the previous quarter.

The growth was the lowest since a 1 percent expansion in the third quarter of 2009 when South Korea's economy started to recover from the global financial crisis.

The central bank noted a decline in corporate investment, which wiped out a small increase in private consumption and an uptick in exports.