S. Korea's exports shrink for 6th straight month in June

South Korea's outbound shipments continued to shrink in June, although its trade surplus widened as imports dropped with greater speed, the government said Wednesday.
  

In June, the country's overall exports came to $46.95 billion, down 1.8 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
  

June marked the sixth consecutive month the country has posted an on-year drop in its exports. In May, the country's exports tumbled 10.9 percent on-year to $42.39 billion.
  

Imports plunged 13.6 percent on-year to $36.7 billion last month. The country's trade surplus came to $10.25 billion, compared with a surplus of $5.35 billion in June 2014.
  

In the first six months of the year, the country's overall exports sank 5 percent on-year to $269.01 billion.
  

Still, the country's trade surplus more than doubled from $19.9 billion to $46.7 billion in the first half of last year as imports plunged 15.6 percent over the cited period.
  

The drop in exports was largely attributed to low global oil prices, which, in turn, have pulled down prices of South Korea's key export items, including petroleum products, such as gasoline and diesel, and petrochemical goods.
  

"The drop in exports has somewhat slowed partly on a rise in the number of working days in June, as well as improvements to other conditions, such as a slight increase in global oil prices," the ministry said in a press release.
   

The ministry has said the average price of Dubai crude, which accounts for over 80 percent of the country's overall oil imports, plunged nearly 45 percent to $57.70 per barrel in April from $104.60 the same month last year.
  

As of Tuesday, Dubai crude was traded at $59.56 per barrel in the international market, according to the state-run Korea National Oil Corp.
  

In June, outbound shipments of mobile communication devices, such as cellular phones, spiked 17.9 percent on-year, with shipments of steel products and automobiles gaining 7.6 percent and 6.5 percent on-year, respectively.
  

Exports of petroleum products plunged 14.4 percent on-year while those of petrochemical products, such as ethanol and benzene, also dropped 12.8 percent.
  

By country, exports to the United States jumped 10.9 percent, with shipments to the 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations also surging 9.8 percent.
  

Shipments to China, the world's single largest importer of South Korean goods, inched up 0.9 percent while shipments to Japan plunged 12.7 percent.
  

The fall in imports was largely attributed to a cut in energy prices, according to the ministry.
  

In the first 20 days of June, the country's imports of raw materials plunged 32.4 percent on-year as imports of petroleum plummeted 36.4 percent, with imports of natural gas also tumbling 53.3 percent.
  

Raw materials that include steel and petroleum products account for about 40 percent of the country's overall imports.
  

Imports of capital goods and consumer products, on the other hand, gained 8.3 percent and 5.8 percent on-year, respectively, it said. (Yonhap)