SEOUL, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- South Korea posted trade surplus for 94 straight months through November despite the continued fall in export, customs office data showed Monday.
The revised figure for trade surplus reached 3.3 billion U.S. dollars in November, staying in the black for 94 months since February 2012, according to Korea Customs Service.
Export, which takes up about half of the export-driven economy, declined 14.4 percent over the year to 44.1 billion U.S. dollars last month, while import dived 13.0 percent to 40.7 billion U.S. dollars.
Chip export plummeted 30.9 percent amid the remaining downturn of business cycle in the global semiconductor industry.
Oil product export reduced 12.2 percent on cheaper crude oil, and shipment of telecommunication devices such as smartphone retreated 4.6 percent in the month.
Display panel shipment dropped 52.2 percent, but those for automobiles and consumer electronics rose 0.4 percent and 4.4 percent respectively.
Exports to China and the United States, South Korea's top two trading partners, dived 12.3 percent and 8.3 percent each, with those to the European Union and Japan sliding 21.9 percent and 11.0 percent respectively.
