reuters/test/14862

SOUTH KOREA MOVES TO SLOW GROWTH OF TRADE SURPLUS
  South Korea's trade surplus is growing too
  fast and the government has started taking steps to slow it
  down, Deputy Prime Minister Kim Mahn-je said.
      He told a press conference the government planned to
  increase investment, speed up the opening of the local market
  to foreign imports and gradually adjust its currency to hold
  the surplus "at a proper level."
      But he said the government would not allow the won to
  appreciate too much in a short period of time. South Korea has
  been under pressure from Washington to revalue the won.
      The U.S. Wants South Korea to cut its trade surplus with
  the U.S., Which rose to 7.4 billion dlrs in 1986 from 4.3
  billion dlrs in 1985.
      Kim, who is also economic planning minister, said prospects
  were bright for the South Korean economy, but the government
  would try to hold the current account surplus to around five
  billion dlrs a year for the next five years.
      "Our government projections of eight pct GNP growth, five
  billion dlrs of (current account) surplus and 12 pct growth in
  exports all seemed to be reasonable early this year. But now
  the surplus is growing faster than we expected," he said.
      Trade ministry officials said South Korea's exports rose 35
  pct to 9.34 billion dlrs in the first three months of this
  year, while imports rose only 8.5 pct to 8.2 billion dlrs.
      Kim said the swing of South Korea's current account to a
  surplus of 4.65 billion dlrs in 1986 from an 890 mln dlr
  deficit in 1985 was very significant. The surplus enabled the
  country to reduce its foreign debt last year for the first
  time.
      South Korea's foreign debt, which fell to 44.5 billion dlrs
  in 1986 from 46.8 billion in 1985, is still among the largest
  in Asia.
      "This huge amount of our foreign debt has been one of the
  major constraints on our development... Last year was a major
  turning point for the Korean economy," Kim said.
      Kim said his government plannned to reduce the ratio of
  foreign debt to the country's GNP to about 20 pct in 1991, from
  about 50 pct in 1986.
      "The government, however, does not want to accelerate
  reducing the debt by making an excessive trade surplus," he
  said.
      Kim said a sudden rise in the surplus would cause inflation
  and lead to trade friction with Seoul's major trading partners,
  particularly the United States.
      "We need a surplus because we have to reduce our debt, but
  we are taking measures to hold the size of the surplus at a
  proper level," Kim said.