-- Buoyed by surging tech and semiconductor exports, South Korea's current-account surplus struck an all-time record in March, reported the Bank of Korea on Friday.
The nation's current-account surplus reached $37.3 billion in March, dwarfing the previous zenith of $23.2 billion set in February, while notching South Korea's 35th-straight month of positive balance-of-payments, added the central bank.
South Korea logged an international goods trade surplus of $35.1 billion in March, as exports ballooned to an all-time high of $94.3 billion, up 56.9% from a year earlier. The nation's imports increased by a lesser amount, 17.4% to $59.24 billion, noted the Bank of Korea.
Central bank officials appeared confident South Korea's export boom would be sustained, despite geopolitical turmoil.
"The US-Iran war has hardly affected goods exports and imports in March," said a Bank of Korea statistician in a press conference, reported The Korea Herald. "The impact of the war will be seen in April, but it is not strong enough to change the overall trend."
Exports of IT products in March rose 111.7% from a year earlier, including a 149.8% lift in chip shipments and a 167.5% increase in computer peripherals, reported The Korea Herald.
In international services trade, South Korea registered a $1.29 billion deficit in March, said the Bank of Korea.
In addition to the trade in goods surplus in March, South Korea's net primary income account surplus grew to $3.58 billion in March, elevated by increased dividend income from offshore direct and portfolio investments.
Net primary income reflects earnings from global investments, such as interest and dividends from foreign subsidiaries, as well as wages earned by citizens working abroad, minus payments made to foreign investors from South Korean enterprises.
The Bank of Korea also reported that offshore portfolio investors reduced their holdings of South Korean equities by $29.3 in March, on geopolitical concerns and profit-taking.
Seoul's rising KOSPI equities index struck record highs in March, although the tech-heavy metric has continued to rally since, hitting another new all-time high on Friday.