<Anchor>



The trade balance recorded another deficit last month.

It is the seventh month in a row, the longest period since the Asian financial crisis.

Exports, which had been holding up, also turned to a decline for the first time in two years, putting our economy in a state of emergency.



This is reporter Jae Hee-won.



<Reporter>



DRAM memory semiconductor prices fell by 22.5% in one month.



Almost half of what it was a year ago.



Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, the world's first and second largest DRAM markets, plunged in the third quarter.



Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that supply parts to these companies are also difficult to foresee.



[Semiconductor major supplier: It becomes an atmosphere where we cannot actively produce much.

Because stock keeps piling up.

It becomes difficult for all the suppliers in a chain.

Management that endures until next year...

.]



Due to the sluggishness of semiconductors, which account for 20% of our exports, last month's exports fell 5.7% from a year ago.



Negative growth for the first time in two years.



Exports of petrochemicals and steel, which were two key exporters along with semiconductors, were also hit as the Chinese market contracted due to the economic slowdown.



On the other hand, imports rose 9.9% from a year ago as the prices of energy imports such as oil, gas and coal continued to climb high.



As a result, the trade balance last month recorded a deficit of 6.7 billion dollars, or about 9.6 trillion won, for seven consecutive months.



This is the longest deficit in 25 years since the 1997 Asian financial crisis.



The problem is that things don't seem to be getting any better for the time being.



[Kim Yang-paeng / Research Institute of Industry: Unless the Ukraine crisis is dragging on for a little longer than expected and the interest rate hike or the strength of the dollar is not easily resolved…

.]



The government also said that it would be difficult to return to an increase in exports for the time being, and that it would look for a way around five new industries, including semiconductors, secondary batteries, and overseas construction.



(Video editing: Park Jeong-sam)