Exports down 0.9 pct during first 10 days of Jan.

▲ This photo taken Jan. 10, 2023, shows containers at a port in Busan, 453 kilometers south of Seoul. (Yonhap)

exports-January

Exports down 0.9 pct during first 10 days of Jan.

By Kang Yoon-seung

SEOUL, Jan. 11 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's exports slipped 0.9 percent on-year in the first 10 days of January, data showed Wednesday, as demand for chips and precision machinery slowed.

The country's outbound shipments stood at US$13.86 billion in the Jan. 1-10 period, compared with $13.98 billion a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.

Imports, on the other hand, moved up 6.3 percent on-year to $20.13 billion during the cited period, resulting in a trade deficit of $6.2 billion.

Outbound shipments of chips, the mainstay export product, fell 29.5 percent over the period, the data showed.

In December, monthly exports fell 9.5 percent on-year at $54.99 billion, extending the losing streak to the third consecutive month. Imports went down 2.4 percent on-year last month to $59.68 billion, and the monthly trade deficit came to $4.69 billion.

Imports have exceeded exports in South Korea since April, and December was the first time since 1997 that the country has suffered a trade deficit for nine months in a row.

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