S. Korea swings to trade deficit in 2008

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, Jan. 2 (Yonhap) -- South Korea posted its first trade deficit in more than
a decade in 2008 due to the worldwide economic slump and a surge in energy
prices, a government report said Friday.
The trade deficit reached US$12.9 billion last year, compared with a surplus of
$14.6 billion the year before, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said. It was the
first trade deficit since the $8.4 billion shortfall in 1997.
In December, the country recorded a trade surplus of $670 million, with exports
falling 17.4 percent annually to $27.3 billion and imports sinking 21.5 percent
to $26.6 billion, the ministry said. It was the third consecutive monthly trade
surplus.
According to the report, annual exports rose 13.7 percent on-year to a record
high of $422.4 billion, with imports shooting up 22 percent to $435.4 billion.
"Global hikes in crude oil and other raw material prices were the main
contributor to the annual deficit, with exports being led by ships that surpassed
the $40 billion mark for the first time this year," said Kang Myung-soo, head of
the ministry's export-import division.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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