South Korea's export falls in 1st 10 days of January

South Korea's export fell in the first 10 days of January, posting a trade deficit amid higher import, customs office data showed Wednesday.

Outbound shipment came to 13.86 billion U.S. dollars during the Jan. 1Jan. 10 period, down 0.9 percent compared to the same period of last year, according to Korea Customs Service.

The daily average export dwindled 14.1 percent in the 10-day period.

The export kept a downward trend for the third consecutive month through December as rising worries about global economic downturn weakened demand for locally-made products.

During the 10-day period, semiconductor shipment tumbled 29.5 percent, with those for precision machinery, steel products and home appliances retreating in double figures.

Export to the United States and the European Union (EU) gained in double digits, but shipment to Vietnam declined in the period.

Import gained 6.3 percent to 20.13 billion dollars in the Jan. 1-Jan. 10 period, sending the trade deficit to 6.27 billion dollars.

The import of crude oil and natural gas declined 6.5 percent and 12.9 percent each, but those for chips, machinery, mobile devices and coal advanced in the 10-day period.

The number of employed people in South Korea grew 509,000 in December last year from a year earlier, statistical office data showed.

The year-on-year employment growth has been on the decline for the seventh straight month, sliding from 935,000 in May to 841,000 in June, 826,000 in July, 807,000 in August, 707,000 in September, 677,000 in October and 626,000 in November each.

Employment rate for those aged 15 or higher rose 0.9 percentage points over the year to 61.3 percent last month. The number of those unemployed was 866,000 in December, down 113,000 from a year earlier. Jobless rate slipped 0.5 percentage points to 3.0 percent.

The number of days with an average temperature across China above 35 degrees Celsius hit 16.4 in 2022, the highest since 1961, said the China Meteorological Administration on Monday.

The average temperature yearround stood at 10.5 degrees Celsius, second only to that of 2021, data from the administration showed.

Central and east China saw a 79day heatwave streak last year between June 13 and August 30, with around 15 percent of China's meteorological stations reporting record-hitting daily peak temperatures, said Xiao Chan, deputy director of the National Climate Center.

Average precipitation last year was 606.1 mm, the least since 2012, said the administration. Belgium is expected to announce a new annual record for cocaine seizures at its port of Antwerp, likely over 100 tonnes, amid ever more aggressive activity by drug cartels.

The ports in Antwerp and nearby Rotterdam in the Netherlands are the two main gateways for cocaine dispatched from Latin America to enter Europe, often hidden in consignments of fruit. The Belgian facility has been breaking records each successive year over the past decade for the amount of cocaine detected and seized.

In 2021, Belgian authorities seized a total of 89.5 tonnes (98.7 tons) in the port, a third more than in 2020.

As of mid-October last year, the running total stood at 71.62 tonnes after some hundred discoveries in the port, according to a spokesman for the finance ministry, which is in charge of customs inspections. The size of the seizures only grew in the last quarter of 2022, towards Christmas, a period when cocaine consumption spikes, a Belgian customs spokeswoman told.

Several interceptions netted more than three tonnes of cocaine each-and in mid-October, one consignment comprising two containers from Suriname contained a total of six tonnes.