February Current Account Surplus of 6.42 Billion USD... Surplus Margin Shrinks

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] As raw material import prices surged, the current account surplus in February shrank by 1.64 billion dollars compared to a year earlier.

According to the preliminary balance of payments statistics released by the Bank of Korea on the 8th, the current account surplus for February was recorded at 6.42 billion dollars.

Although a surplus was recorded for 22 consecutive months since May 2020, the surplus amount decreased by 1.64 billion dollars compared to the same month last year (8.06 billion dollars).

By category, the goods account surplus stood at 4.27 billion dollars, 1.59 billion dollars less than a year earlier.

Exports increased by 8.62 billion dollars from the same month last year (45.25 billion dollars) to 53.87 billion dollars. Major items such as petroleum products and semiconductors showed strong performance, marking 16 consecutive months of year-on-year growth.

Imports recorded 49.6 billion dollars, up 10.21 billion dollars from the same month last year (39.39 billion dollars). With a sharp increase in raw material imports, as well as expanded imports of intermediate goods and consumer goods, imports have increased for 14 consecutive months.

The services account surplus was 570 million dollars, supported by a favorable transportation balance.