5월 경상수지 23억 달러 흑자 전환…작년의 절반 수준<br /><br />South Korea posted a surplus in its current account for May,... a turnaround from the deficit it posted the month before... due to COVID-19.<br />But the surplus was only half... of what was seen a year ago.<br />Yoon Jung-min reports.<br />South Korea's current account bounced back from a deficit the previous month to a surplus in May despite the COVID-19 outbreak.<br />The Bank of Korea said Tuesday that the current account surplus was almost two-point-three billion U.S. dollars.<br />That's a rebound from the deficit in April at the height of the global lockdown,... but on year, the surplus was half of what it was.<br />The goods account surplus was two-point-five billion dollars,... down three billion dollars on-year.<br />Exports were down over 28 percent,... falling for the third consecutive month.<br />Exports of petroleum products and automobiles plummeted in May,... while those of ships and semiconductors increased.<br />Exports to most countries decreased, including shipments to the U.S. and Europe.<br />"South Korea's current account largely depends on the goods account. The pandemic continues,... oil prices remain low and the U.S-China trade conflict is being highlighted again. Still, there's hope that exports to China could start to pick up in June."<br />The services account deficit decreased to 480 million dollars,... thanks to improvements in travel and transport.<br />The central bank said airlines' passenger revenues declined, but revenues from freight services increased.<br />The travel account deficit has also narrowed to 160 million dollars.<br />The primary income surplus decreased to 540 million dollars,... mainly due to lower dividend income.<br />As for the financial account, in May South Korea saw net assets increase by some 3-point-2 billion dollars.<br />Yoon Jung-min, Arirang News.<br />
