South Korean current account surplus doubles to 4 billion dollars

Oct 28, 2010, 7:04 GMT

Seoul - South Korea's current account surplus widened to 4.06 billion dollars in September compared to the previous month as strong exports boosted the economy, the Bank of Korea said Thursday.

The current account surplus rose from a revised 2.19 billion dollars in August, as Asia's fourth-largest economy logged the eighth consecutive month of surplus, the bank said. Year on year, it rose slightly from 4.05 billion dollars.

The surplus came on the back of strong exports, but economic growth slowed in the third quarter over growing concerns of the strength of the global economy.

The Bank of Korea said Wednesday gross domestic product in the July-September period was only 0.7 per cent up from the previous quarter.

Finance Minister Yoon Jeung Hyun said Thursday that the country's economy was on track to grow 6 per cent this year despite various risks, external uncertainties and weak third-quarter growth, the Yonhap News Agency reported.

The traded goods surplus was up from a revised 3.81 billion dollars in August to 5.67 billion dollars in September, mainly due to strong exports in the shipbuilding sector, the central bank said.

South Korea logged a current account surplus of 23.73 billion dollars for the first nine months of 2010, compared with 32.11 billion dollars in the same period last year.

The current account tracks goods, services and investment income, making it the broadest measure of international trade.