South Korea posted a current account surplus in May although it halved from a year earlier with a plunge in exports due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to preliminary data by the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, the country's current account surplus came to two-point-29 billion dollars in the month. 

The reading marks a turnaround from a three-point-33-billion-dollar deficit posted the previous month, the largest deficit since January 2011.

However, the surplus more than halved from a year earlier when it posted five-point-18 billion dollars.

South Korea's exports plunged 28-point-two percent on-year to 34-point-six billion dollars in May, while imports dropped 24-point-eight percent to 32-point-one billion dollars. On-year exports and imports both fell for three straight months.