South Korea's current account surplus hit an eight-month high in June on record exports, the central bank said Thursday, showing that overseas shipments are humming along despite strong currency and global economic uncertainties.
The current account surplus reached US$2.99 billion in June, up from a revised $2.18 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.
The June surplus was the largest since a $5.11 billion surplus tallied in October last year. The current account remained in the black for the 16th straight month in June on exports, which account for about 50 percent of the South Korean economy.
The surplus amounted to a combined $9.06 billion in the first half and the central bank revised up its 2011 forecast of the surplus to $15.5 billion.
The BOK said the underlying trend of the surplus will likely continue in July as overseas shipments remain firm.
"The July surplus is likely to be similar to the size of the surplus tallied in June. The full-year surplus is expected to easily meet the BOK's 2011 surplus target," Kim Young-bae, director general of the BOK's economic statistics division, said at a press conference.
Kim said key export items like cars and ships extended their growth, causing the country's overall overseas shipments to remain robust even though recent falls in chip and flat panel prices slowed the export growth of tech products.
"The competitiveness of Korea's exports remained solid," Kim said, declining to comment on the impacts of the won's ascent on exports.
"Given Korean products have replaced part of Japanese goods in some overseas markets, Korea's exports are expected to maintain their growth momentum in the second half."
The surplus is widely expected to add further upward pressure on the local currency, which has appreciated about 8 percent to the dollar since January.
South Korea's exports remained firm, withstanding the local currency's continued gains and global economic uncertainty like the eurozone debt crisis.
South Korea's goods balance posted a surplus of $3.66 billion in June, up from a revised $1.63 billion in May and the largest surplus in six months.
Exports grew 21.3 percent on-year to an all-time monthly high of $48.7 billion in June and imports expanded 27.6 percent to $45 billion.
The service account, which includes outlays by South Koreans on overseas trips, posted a deficit of $632.4 million last month, a turnaround from a surplus of $15.5 million in May.
In June, the travel account logged a deficit of $823.2 million, larger than a shortfall of $684.4 million the previous month.
The primary income account, which tracks wages for foreign workers and dividend payments overseas, logged a surplus of $239.8 million in June, compared with a surplus of $517.3 million the previous month.
Meanwhile, the capital and financial account, covering cross-border investments, posted a net outflow of $4.64 billion in June, compared with a net outflow of a revised $3.96 billion in May, according to the BOK. (Yonhap News)
