South Korea has posted more than 300 million dollars in trade deficit with Chile in the first quarter of 2004.

The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) said that the nation's trade deficit with the South American country in the first quarter has already exceeded the total trade deficit recorded last year. The association cited the increase of imported goods from Chile following the enactment of a South Korea-Chile free trade agreement.

Imports from Chile recorded 462 million dollars during the first three months of this year, up almost 90 percent over the same period last year.

Meanwhile, exports to Chile posted 134 million dollars, up only 4.3 percent for a total trade deficit of 327 million dollars in the year's first quarter.

The association attributed the ballooning trade imbalance to South Korea's high import demands for Chilean copper and other raw materials.