South Korea posted $11.5 billion in trade surplus last month on faster fall in imports than exports, customs data showed on Friday, Xinhua reported. Revised figure for trade surplus reached $11.5 billion in June, up from $7 billion in May, according to the Korea Customs Service. It was higher than a $10 billion surplus tallied a year ago. The surplus came as imports declined at a faster pace than exports, which fell 2.7% from a year earlier to $45.3 billion in June. Imports dipped 7.7% to $33.8 billion. Ship exports surged 31.4%, and consumer electronics shipment rose 1.3%. But those for cars, telecommunication devices and oil products tumbled 10.9%, 6.3% and 27.1% respectively. Exports to China and the United States, South Korea’s top two trading partners, diminished 9.4% and 7% each, with those to the European Union and Japan shrinking 16.3% and 3.6% respectively. Automobile imports surged 41.2% on demand for foreign luxury cars among local consumers, but crude oil imports tumbled 26.1% amid the prolonged trend of cheaper oil.
