Current account surplus hits 11-month low in Jan.

Korea's current account surplus fell to the lowest level in 11 months in January as soaring oil and commodity prices jacked up import bills, overshadowing robust exports, the central bank said Friday.

The current account surplus reached US$229 million in January, sharply down from $2.11 billion the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). The current account is the broadest measure of cross-border trade.

The January reading marked the smallest surplus since the country logged a current account deficit of $363.1 million in February 2010.

The current account, however, remained in the black for the 11th straight month in January on the back of strong exports, which account for about 50 percent of the Korean economy.

Last year, the country posted a current account surplus of $28.21 billion, the fourth-largest ever, as exports remained brisk despite the local currency's gain.

The surplus is widely expected to bolster the local currency, which has risen about 0.3 percent to the U.S. dollar so far this year.

South Korea's goods balance posted a surplus of $1.63 billion in January, down from $3.68 billion the previous month.

Exports rose 34.4 percent on-year to $42.7 billion last month and imports gained 33.4 percent to $41.1 billion, the largest numbers since $41.9 billion recorded in July 2008.

A shortfall in the service account, which includes outlays by South Koreans on overseas trips, widened to $1.64 billion in January, compared with a $1.15 billion deficit the previous month as more people took overseas travels during the winter vacation season. The January deficit marked the largest shortfall since January 2010.