S Korea's trade surplus sharply drops in November

South Korea's trade surplus made a sharp drop from the previous month in November mainly due to rising raw material prices, the nation's customs office said Wednesday.

According to the Korea Customs Service (KCS), the nation's trade surplus posted 2.67 billion U.S. dollars in November, sharply declining from a 6.41 billion U.S. dollar surplus a month ago.

The decline in surplus came as international raw material prices recently hiked, which in turn pulled up the amount of imports, the agency explained.

While South Korea's exports amounted to 41.29 billion U.S. dollars in November, falling 4.8 percent from a month ago, its imports rose 4.7 percent to 38.62 billion U.S. dollars during the same period.

Meanwhile, compared to a year ago, the surplus was 21.5 percent larger, as exports and imports both grew 21.5 percent and 30.8 percent, respectively, on-year.

As South Korea topped a trade surplus for the 10th consecutive month, the November figure stood at the third-highest level in 2010. 
(Source:xinhua)