Seoul: The Republic of Korea's exports plunged 23.8 percent from a year earlier in the first 10 days of this month, data showed Monday. Outbound shipments reached US$12.83 billion in the May 1-10 period, compared with $16.84 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.
According to Lao News Agency, imports went down 15.9 percent on-year to $14.57 billion during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of $1.7 billion. This decline in trade figures comes despite a positive trend observed in April, where exports gained 3.7 percent from a year earlier to stand at $58.2 billion, marking the third consecutive month of increase.