SEOUL, KOREA - Korea's current account recorded a surplus for 17 consecutive months. The Bank of Korea said in a report "May 2013 International Balance of Payments (Preliminary)" on June 27 that the current account surplus for the month of May was US$8.64 billion, breaking the record in November 2012 when the figure was $6.91.

 

It was because of a decline in imports (-4.8%) to $42.32 billion while a 7.4-percent gain in exports to $45.99 billion, increasing the goods account balance to a $7.27-billion surplus.

 

By item, info-tech devices (32.1%), semiconductors (17.1%), automobiles and auto parts (8.3%), and chemicals (7.7%) saw the largest gains. Meanwhile, ships (-34.6%) and steel products (-8.6%) were the items with the biggest decline.

 

As for the balance in services account, the surplus shrank to $1.13 billion from $1.45 billion in May largely because of a drop in the travel balance of payments to $850 million from $1.13 billion in the previous month.