SEOUL, June 26, 2009 - South Korea logged a current account surplus for the fourth straight month in May as imports fell faster than exports during the ongoing global economic slump, the central Bank of Korea said Friday.

The current account surplus stood at 3.63 billion dollars (SGD5.29 million) in May, compared with 4.25 billion dollars a month earlier.

For the first five months, the accumulated current account surplus amounted to 16.46 billion dollars.

The current account, which measures trade, service and investment flows with the rest of the world, has been in the black since February thanks to a sharp fall in the value of imports.

The trade surplus in May was 5.02 billion dollars, down from a 6.13 billion dollar surplus in April. Imports plunged 39.4 percent from a year earlier to 22.9 billion dollars while exports fell 27.3 percent to 27.9 billion dollars.

The income account, which tracks wages for foreign workers and dividend payments overseas, shifted to a surplus of 360 million dollars from an 860 million dollar deficit in the previous month as overseas stock dividend payouts fell for seasonal reasons.

The capital account, which tracks cross-border investments, posted a net inflow of 6.72 billion dollars, up from a 2.16 billion dollar surplus in April.

Last year South Korea posted its first annual current account shortfall in 11 years - 6.41 billion dollars - due mainly to soaring oil prices.

--AFP