S. Korea logs record current account surplus with US in 2021
Container ships are seen loaded with cargo at Busan Port, Tuesday. Yonhap
South Korea posted a record current account surplus with the United States and Southeast Asia in 2021 on brisk demand for semiconductors and other key products, but its shortfall with the Middle East widened sharply on soaring oil prices, the central bank said Friday.
The current account surplus with the U.S. totaled $44.96 billion last year, compared with a $32.8 billion surplus the previous year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK), surpassing the previous record of $41.5 billion in 2014.
The country's overall current account surplus rose to $88.3 billion in 2021 from $75.9 billion a year earlier.
South Korea also registered a record current account surplus of $102.5 billion with Southeast Asian nations last year, up sharply from the previous year's $79.2 billion.
Seoul's current account surplus with China, its top export market, expanded to $23.61 billion in 2021 from $17.25 billion.
The current account balance with the European Union swung to a $1.27 billion surplus from a $5.9 billion shortfall thanks to brisk exports of chemicals, ships and autos.
Meanwhile, South Korea's current account deficit with the Middle East ballooned to $48 billion last year from $28.26 billion a year earlier on surging crude prices; with its shortfall with Japan rising to $22.14 billion from $20.22 billion, according to the BOK. (Yonhap)