Exports Rise In December, KRW Higher On Session

Preliminary data from South Korea showed that exports continued to be strong in December, exports for the first 20 days of December rose 1.2% Y/Y. Imports in the same period fell 8%, which hints at the resurgence of Covid restrictions in the period.

• As a note, government forecasts released recently predict an 8.6% rise in exports next year, while it expects domestic demand to rise 3.1%.
• Covid restrictions have been tightened again, the most recent measures announced on Monday were a ban on gatherings of over 5 people.
• There were also reports that the government in South Korea are considering up to KRW 4tn in further support measures next month. The stimulus would be funded by reserves and the government is said to be considering an extra budget in 2021.
• USD/KRW is slightly lower today, last down around 0.05 at 1099.40.
• An extremely thin economic docket from South Korea this week, PPI is due on Tuesday and the finance ministry will sell 3-month, 1-year and 20-year paper today.