S.Korea’s November travel account deficit doubles vs October

South Korea’s travel account deficit doubled to $1.28 billion in November 2023 compared to the previous month, narrowing the current account surplus which maintained its seven-month surplus streak, central bank data showed on Tuesday.

The travel deficit widened from the prior month’s shortfall of $642.1 million due to a surge in the number of outbound travelers, while the number of inbound visitors declined, the Bank of Korea said.

The November figure marked the largest-ever deficit in the travel balance for the same month in previous years, since posting a $1.35 billion loss in 2018.

The increased travel account deficit widened the service account loss to $2.13 billion in November, versus the $1.25 billion deficit the month before.

CURRENT ACCOUNT SURPLUS

The current account surplus narrowed to $4.06 billion in November last year, compared to the $6.80 billion surplus in October.

However, the balance maintained its surplus trend for a seventh straight month, since May of last year.

The balance on primary income was in a $154.6 million loss, weighed down by quarterly dividend payouts.

By contrast, the goods account surplus snowballed to $7.0 billion in November 2023 from the prior month's $5.35 billion thanks to an increase in semiconductor chip shipments and export growth to China.

Write to Jin-gyu Kang at josep@hankyung.com
 

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.