Overseas sales by Asia's fourth-largest economy fell 14.2% year-on-year to $49.62 billion in April, trade ministry data showed on Monday, after a 13.6% fall in February and compared with a 13.5% drop tipped in a Reuters survey. It was the worst decline in three months, and reinforced the recent signs of a domestic economy struggling to fire on all cylinders in the wake of slowing global growth. A breakdown of the data showed exports to China tumbled 26.5% for their 11th consecutive month of declines, while those to the United States fell 4.4% in their first shrinking month in three. Shipments to the European Union rose 9.9%.
By product, semiconductor exports dived 41.0%, extending their losses to the ninth straight month. Petroleum products fell 27.3%, but automobiles jumped 40.3%.
The trade ministry said in a statement that the fall was due to a delay in global economic recovery and weakness in the semiconductor industry, while there were also fewer working days and high base effects. Imports in April fell 13.3% to $52.23 billion following a 6.4% fall in March, also faster than a 10.6% decline expected by economists. It was the biggest drop since August 2020. As a result, the country posted a trade deficit of $2.62 billion in April, the 14th month in a row that the export-reliant economy suffered a monthly trade deficit, though it was the smallest since June. (Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Choonsik Yoo & Shri Navaratnam)
