Sales at local department stores and discount chains declined for a third straight month in November, adding to worries that private-sector spending is not sturdy enough to support economic recovery, preliminary government data showed Tuesday.

According to the data from the finance ministry, department store sales dropped 5.6 percent on-year in November, while discount chain sales shrank 3.9 percent over the same period.

This marked the third straight month of decline since September, when they fell 6.3 percent and 10.1 percent, respectively.

Sales of domestically-produced passenger vehicles, however, increased 7 percent in November, while gasoline sales inched up 0.4 percent over the same period, the report showed. 

The data comes amid worries that the country's overall private-sector consumption and corporate investment are not strong enough to prop up economic recovery. Facility investment by companies shrank 4.6 percent in October from a year earlier, a sharp turnaround from the previous month's 13.3 percent gain. 

On the latest economic conditions, the ministry said anticipation that the U.S. will end its years-long stimulus efforts, the yen's depreciation, and the falling crude oil prices are all deepening external volatility, posing more uncertainties for South Korea's future economic trend. 

The U.S. rate hikes, in particular, would not have much direct impact on Korea, given its relatively strong economic health, but the ministry expressed concern that the country could face negative ramifications for its exports to emerging countries that remain more vulnerable to external shocks. (Yonhap)