SEOUL — South Korea's outbound shipments dipped 3.6 percent in October from a year earlier, snapping the previous month's brief rebound, data showed Sunday, due to the resurgence of new coronavirus cases around the globe and fewer working days, Yonhap reported
Outbound shipments came to $44.9 billion last month, compared to $46.6 billion a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Imports moved down 5.8 percent to $39 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $5.9 billion.
The latest figure roughly falls in line with market expectations. According to a poll by Yonhap Infomax, the financial arm of Yonhap News Agency, the country's October exports were expected to have decreased 3.12 percent on-year. The ministry attributed the decrease to the fewer number of working days in the month.
"Segments which suffered from the pandemic, such as displays, electronics, steel and auto parts, are slowly recovering, giving a positive signal on the recovery of exports down the road," Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo said in a statement.
But global trade is anticipated to face more jitters from the virus pandemic, which will result in weaker business sentiment and trade. European nations have resumed adopting travel restrictions and lockdowns as the number of new patients has increased at an alarming rate recently.
The country enjoyed a 4.5 percent rise in its outbound shipments in February, the first on-year rebound in 14 months, before it suffered full-fledged economic fallout from the pandemic.
Exports fell again in March as the number of COVID-19 cases around the globe escalated and the pace of decline further accelerated, plunging 25.5 percent in April and 23.6 percent in May.
Asia's fourth-largest economy had extended its slump in exports to a sixth month in August, as the new coronavirus around the globe continued to strain business activities, before rebounding 7.7 percent in September.
The pace of recovery may be moderate for the trade-driven economy because new waves of coronavirus infections recently gripped the United States and European nations, it added. — SPA-Yonhap
