Seoul: South Korea recorded a decline in its current account surplus with the United States in 2025, marking the first drop in six years. This decrease is attributed to a widened service account deficit, while the country's current account deficit with China and Japan also expanded, as revealed by central bank data.

According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea's current account surplus with the U.S. amounted to $111.42 billion in 2025, a decrease from the record high of $116.97 billion in 2024, as reported by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The goods account surplus showed a 2.53 percent increase year-on-year, reaching $111.98 billion, largely due to a rise in semiconductor and smartphone exports.

However, the service account deficit with the U.S. widened significantly to $14.62 billion in 2025, compared to the previous year's $8.88 billion deficit. The central bank data also indicated that South Korea experienced a current account deficit of $25.32 billion with China, an increase of 7.97 percent from the prior year.

South Korea's current account deficit with Japan increased by 13 percent year-on-year, totaling $20.3 billion. Meanwhile, the country's current account surplus with the European Union rose by 9.9 percent to $24.42 billion, driven by robust exports.

Additionally, South Korea saw a $71.84 billion current account surplus with Southeast Asian nations in 2025, a 13.24 percent increase from the previous year. Conversely, it recorded a $49.75 billion deficit with the Middle East, a reduction of 26.8 percent over the same period. Overall, South Korea's current account surplus expanded to $123 billion in 2025, a substantial increase from $99.97 billion in the previous year, according to the data.