South Korea recorded the largest current account surplus in 32 months in May due to a sharp rise in the trade surplus and the increase in dividend income, central bank data showed on Friday. The country’s current account surplus reached $8.92 billion in May, a turnaround from a deficit of $290 million in April. The May surplus marks the largest since September 2021, when the surplus reached $9.51 billion.
In the first five months of 2024, South Korea’s current account surplus reached $25.47 billion, a turnaround from a deficit of $5.03 billion during the same period in 2023.
The central bank cautiously expects the year’s current account surplus to be higher than expected, although there are still headwinds such as uncertain economic conditions and oil prices.
The central bank reveals that South Korea’s goods account reached an $8.75 billion surplus in May following a $5.11 billion surplus in April. Meanwhile, exports, which played a major role in this economic shift, rose 11.1 percent year-on-year to $58.95 billion in May, while imports declined 1.9 percent to $50.20 billion.
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In addition, South Korea’s primary income account, which tracks the wages of foreign workers, dividend payments from overseas, and interest income, reported a $1.76 billion surplus in May. That is a major shift away from the $3.33 billion deficit in April, the data showed.
The central bank also reveals that the services account deficit declined to $1.29 billion in May from a deficit of $1.66 billion the previous month.
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