-- South Korea's current account surplus sharply rose to $37.33 billion in March from $23.19 billion in February, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea released Friday.
Compared with the year-ago period, the figure rose from a surplus of $9.58 billion, the central bank said.
The goods account registered a surplus of $35.07 billion. Exports rose by 56.9% on an annual basis to $94.32 billion, while imports increased 17.4% to $59.24 billion.
Meanwhile, the services account posted a deficit of $1.29 billion, led by deficits in other business services and manufacturing services accounts.
The primary income account recorded a $3.58 billion surplus in the month, owing to higher equity income. The secondary income account incurred a deficit of $300 million, the data showed.