South Korea is expected to register the seventh-largest current account surplus among the world's leading market economies this year thanks to solid exports, a report showed Friday.
According to the report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the country's current account surplus should reach US$29.7 billion for all of 2010, trailing Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, the Netherlands and Sweden.
Japan's favorable balance is likely to be the largest at $190.8 billion, with Germany ranking second with a surplus of 170.4 billion.
South Korea's surplus for this year represents a sharp decline from a record high of $42.7 billion reached in 2009, when the country cut back on imports in the face of the global economic slump and a liquidity crunch.
But its strong manufacturing sector and export competitiveness have effectively helped it maintain a large favorable balance sheet this year, the report said.
In the 11 months of this year, outbound shipments of locally made goods surged 29.5 percent on-year to $424.3 billion, surpassing the $422 billion worth of exports tallied for the whole of 2009.
The 33-member, Paris-based organization predicted Seoul's current account surplus may fall off to $25 billion in 2011 but rebound to $28.8 billion in the following year.
The report also said South Korea's current account surplus size should be the ninth largest within the organization this year when compared to its gross domestic product (GDP).
The total is roughly equal to 3 percent of the GDP. Norway's current account surplus is likely to be equal to 13.8 percent of its GDP, with
Switzerland and Luxembourg coming in second and third place, respectively.
The report, meanwhile, said the United States is expected to post a current account deficit of $495.7 billion this year, followed by Spain with
$76.7 billion, France with $55.9 billion and Britain with $49.4 billion.