SEOUL (AFP) - SOUTH Korea's current-account surplus rose to a four-month high last month on brisk exports and reduced overseas travel spending, the central bank said on Friday.

The surplus was US$4.94 billion (S$6.9 billion) in October, up from a revised US$4.03 billion in September.

October was the ninth consecutive month that the current account balance, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, was in the black as sluggish domestic demand undercut imports.

For the 10 months to October, the accumulated surplus now stood at US$37 billion, the Bank of Korea said. Senior bank official Lee Young Bog said the surplus was expected to fall in November owing to an ongoing railway strike, but the full-year figure would still exceed US$40 billion.

Exports in October fell 5.5 per cent year-on-year to US$35.89 billion, declining for the 10th consecutive month, but imports contracted by a larger 14.7 per cent to US$30.17 billion.

The deficit in the service account, including Koreans' spending on overseas trips, was US$1.13 billion, down from a shortfall of US$1.63 billion a month earlier. The capital account, tracking cross-border investments, posted a net inflow of US$1.54 billion in October, sharply down from US$7.2 billion the previous month.

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