According to Yonhap News,

(SEOUL=Yonhap News) South Korea's current account surplus soared to a fresh record high in June as an increase in the surplus in the goods balance offset a widening service account deficit caused by the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), data showed Monday.

The current account surplus reached US$12.19 billion in June, compared with a revised $8.62 billion surplus in May, according to the provisional data released by the Bank of Korea. The current account is the biggest measure of cross-border trade.

With the latest data, the Korean economy posted an accumulative current account surplus of a record $52.39 billion for the January-June period, compared with a $39.43 billion surplus last year.

The amount accounts for roughly 54 percent of the central bank's annual current account surplus estimate of $98 billion. Last month, the BOK raised its forecast to $98 billion from $96 billion, citing a fall in raw material prices and sluggish sales in the tourism industry.

The on-month surplus increase was largely attributed to a gain in the balance of goods, which reached $13.22 billion in June as imports fell at a sharper pace than exports. While exports fell 2 percent on-year, imports tumbled 17.3 percent.

mil@yna.co.kr

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