SEOUL, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- South Korea logged trade deficit in the first 10 days of this month due to faster fall in export than import, customs office data showed Tuesday.
Trade deficit came to 2.44 billion U.S. dollars in the September 1-10 period, up from a deficit of 1.48 billion dollars tallied in the same period of last year, according to Korea Customs Service.
For the past five months through August, the country's trade balance remained in red.
Export diminished 16.6 percent over the year to 16.25 billion dollars in the first 10 days of September, while import retreated 10.9 percent to 18.69 billion dollars.
The reduced export and import were attributed to lower working days that came from the Chuseok holiday, a South Korean version of Thanksgiving Day.
Oil products export grew 11.7 percent, but shipment for mobile devices, automobiles and steel products declined in double figures.
Export to the United States, the European Union (EU) and Vietnam dwindled in double digits in the 10-day period.
Import for the country's three major energy sources, including crude oil, natural gas and coal, stood at 6.11 billion dollars in the first 10 days of September, up 31.7 percent from a year earlier.
Oil products import sank 33.5 percent in the cited period, and those for semiconductor equipment and machinery tumbled more than 20 percent.
