South Korea's current account surplus narrows in June

South Korea's current account surplus narrowed in June from its record high in the previous month as exports of display panels and steel products declined, the central bank said Tuesday. The current account surplus reached US$7.24 billion in June, compared with a surplus of $8.64 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade. Despite the smaller surplus, the June reading marked the 17th straight month of a surplus run and the country's cumulative surplus amounted to $29.77 billion in the first half. The BOK recently revised up its 2013 current account surplus estimate to $53 billion from the previous $33 billion. If realized, the full-year surplus would be a record high, topping last year's $43.14 billion. BOK Gov. Kim Choong-soo said last week that the country's solid current account surplus has served as a buffer for the local financial market as bond yields have been on the rise amid growing speculation about U.S. stimulus tapering. The balance of Korea's goods posted a smaller surplus of $5.02 billion in June, compared with a surplus of $7.27 billion in May mainly because exports declined on-month in June. In June, overseas shipments fell 3.1 percent on-year to $45.36 billion, while imports declined 3.4 percent to $40.33 billion. The service account, which includes outlays by South Koreans on overseas trips, posted a surplus of $1.18 billion last month, compared with a surplus of $1.13 billion in May. The primary income account, which tracks wages of foreign workers and dividend payments overseas, logged a surplus of $957.2 million in June, larger than a surplus of $193.6 million in May. Meanwhile, the capital and financial account, which covers cross-border investments, posted a net outflow of $4.9 billion in June, compared with a record net outflow of $11.6 billion the previous month, the BOK said.