S.Korea's trade terms hit 2nd lowest in September

SEOUL, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's terms of trade hit the second-lowest figure last month due to faster gain in import costs than export prices, central bank data showed Thursday.

The net terms-of-trade index for goods, which gauges the amount of import that can be bought with a unit-export proceed, stood at 83.47 in September, down 9.9 percent from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.

It marked the second-lowest reading since relevant data began to be compiled in 1988, keeping a downward trend for the 18th successive month. The record low was 82.71 tallied in July.

The import costs jumped 10.0 percent in September from a year earlier, while the export prices dipped 0.9 percent.

The import value index soared 18.5 percent last month, continuing to rise for 22 straight months amid higher prices for mining products and farm goods.

The import volume index gained 7.7 percent in September on a yearly basis, keeping an upward trend for the third consecutive month.

The export value index increased 2.8 percent last month, and the export volume index added 3.8 percent.