Seoul
South Korea’s exports fell 10.3 percent in 2019 after setting a record high performance the year before, due mainly to a slump in the global chip market coupled with the trade feud between the world’s top two economies, data showed Wednesday. The country’s outbound shipments came to US$542.4 billion last year, compared with $604.8 billion posted a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. It marked the first time in 10 years for the annual exports to drop by a two-digit percentage. Imports moved down 6 percent on-year to $503.2 billion. Despite the weak performance, South Korea still managed to post a combined trade volume above $1 trillion for the third year. Only nine countries have so far posted a trade volume above $1 trillion for three straight years.—AFP
