SEOUL, March 8 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's currency account surplus hit a nine-month low in January on weak demand for locally-made semiconductors, central bank data showed on Friday.
Current account surplus amounted to 2.77 billion U.S. dollars in January, the lowest since April last year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account balance stayed in black for 81 months since May 2012.
The reduced surplus came as export, which accounts for about half of the export-driven economy, fell 5.4 percent from a year earlier to 49.38 billion U.S. dollars in January.
It was the biggest export reduction in four months as chip export posted a double-digit decline amid lower product price.
Export to China, South Korea's biggest trading partner, also slumped by a double digit in January.
Affected by the export fall, trade surplus for goods stood at 5.61 billion U.S. dollars in January, the lowest since February last year.
Services account balance, which measures the flow of travel, transport costs and royalties, posted a deficit of 3.61 billion U.S. dollars in January, the biggest deficit in 12 months.
Primary income account, which includes monthly salary and investment income, saw a surplus of 1.4 billion U.S. dollars.
Financial account, which gauges cross-border capital flow without transactions in goods and services, logged a net outflow of three billion U.S. dollars in January.
