S Korea trade surplus $2.76 billion

South Korea, facing declining exports, had a trade surplus of $2.76 billion in July, the Korea Customs Service said Tuesday. Although it marked the sixth consecutive month of a surplus trade balance, the July numbers were down nearly 41 percent from the $4.65 billion surplus in the same month of last year. July exports were down 8.8 percent year-on-year to $44.6 billion, while imports were down 5.4 percent to $41.9 billion, leaving a surplus of $2.76 billion surplus, Yonhap News Agency reported. On the export front, shipments of automobile parts and display panels increased slightly from a year earlier due to growing overseas demand, but they were more than offset by those of ships plunging 58.3 percent and those of telecommunications dropping 24.8 percent.