The Korea Customs Service announced on Nov. 16 that South Korea’s exports decreased 3.8 percent to US$44.9 billion year on year in October this year while imports fell 5.6 percent to US$39.1 billion. Its trade surplus continued for six months in a row. Last month, South Korea’s average daily exports hit this year’s high. Specifically, the daily average was US$2.14 billion, up 5.4 percent from a year ago. South Korea’s semiconductor, automobile and wireless communications device exports increased 10.2 percent, 7.1 percent and 5.1 percent in October, respectively. On the other hand, auto parts, petroleum product, ship and consumer electronics exports fell 8.8 percent, 49.8 percent, 19.5 percent and 12.6 percent, respectively.
Its exports to the United States rose by 3.3 percent, the European Union by 9.4 percent and Vietnam by 7.2 percent whereas those to Japan and the Middle East dropped 18.7 percent and 19.1 percent, respectively. Last month, South Korea’s machinery imports rose 6.2 percent and memory chip imports jumped 29.4 percent. In contrast, its crude oil, wireless communications device and automobile imports fell 33 percent, 24.1 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively. The semiconductor imports increased for the fourth consecutive month and automobile for the second. The wireless communications device imports increased in seven months. The unit cost of crude oil import went down 33.3 percent year on year with international oil prices falling.