S. Korea posts trade surplus for 56 months

South Korean economy posted trade surplus for 56 straight months through September as both exports and imports went down, customs data showed on Monday.

Revised figure for trade surplus in September reached 6.9 billion U.S. dollars, up from 5.1 billion dollars of surplus in the previous month, according to the Korea Customs Service (KCS).

The trade balance had stayed in black since February 2012 as both exports and imports declined.

Exports, which account for about half of the economy, slumped 5.9 percent from a year earlier to 40.9 billion dollars in September. Imports shed 1.7 percent to 34 billion dollars.

Outbound shipments of auto parts picked up 3.4 percent, but exports of semiconductors, steels, oil products, cars, ships and flat panels all went down last month.

Exports to Japan and Latin America increased, but those to China and the United States, South Korea's top two trading partners, retreated 9 percent and 6 percent respectively. Exports to the European Union (EU) tumbled 14.5 percent on a yearly basis.

During the January-September period, exports amounted to 363.1 billion dollars, down 8.5 percent from the same period of last year. Imports declined 10.6 percent to 295.3 billion dollars in the cited period, sending the trade surplus in the period to 67.8 billion dollars. Endit