First Decline in 3 Years
Total exports from Korea showed the first decline in three years last year. The country’s annual trade volume fell below US$1 trillion for the first time since 2011.
The Korean government announced on Jan. 1 that total exports added up to US$527.2 billion last year, down 7.9 percent from a year ago, while total imports decreased by 16.9 percent to US$436.8 billion. It explained that the global economic downturn and a decrease in oil prices affected the estimated figures during the course of 2015.
As a result, trade volume fell from US$1.0982 trillion to US$964 billion, falling short of the US$1 trillion mark for the first time in five years. The trade surplus, in the meantime, hit a new high of US$90.4 billion, as imports plunged faster than exports.