Global investment banks estimate the South Korean economy will expand 3 percent this year, mainly fueled by a rebound in Chinese demand, a report showed Monday.

The growth projection compiled by 10 foreign IBs for Asia’s fourth-largest economy came in at an average of 3 percent, according to the Korea Center for International Finance.

Nomura and Deutsche Bank gave the lowest 2.5 percent growth estimate for Korea in 2013, while Morgan Stanley bet a 3.7 percent expansion, the highest among the tallied IBs, the KCIF said.

For 2012, the IBs forecast that the local economy would have advanced between 2.2-2.3 percent, down from their initial growth estimate of 4.3 percent.

Their outlook trend stands in line with the revised figures by the Korean government. At the end of 2012, the government adjusted this year’s growth rate to 3.0 percent, compared with the earlier estimate of 4.0 percent.

The IBs expects that Korea will fare well in 2013, as China will likely boost its domestic demand, spurring investment and consumption in the global market. (Yonhap News)