S. Korean economic growth to slow

South Korea''s state-run think tank on Sunday revised down its 2011 growth project for the local economy to 4.1 percent, saying that the global economic slowdown will likely hurt the country''s exports. The revised estimate of Asia''s fourth-largest economy is compared with a 4.4 percent forecast made in April, according to the Korea Institute of Finance (KIF). "A delayed economic recovery in major advanced economies will likely crimp Korea''s exports and volatile financial markets will dent households'' room for spending," the KIF said. The think tank''s growth projection was lower than the government''s forecast of a 4.5 percent expansion. The central bank''s 2011 growth estimate stood at 4.3 percent. Global economic situations are growing bleaker, raising concerns that the global economy may slide back into a recession, hit by the first-ever U.S. credit downgrade and lingering eurozone sovereign risks.