CHINA/ECONOMY/SOUTH KOREA/TRADE DEALS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “South Korean exports sustained growth in annual terms in November but missed expectations, official data showed on Saturday 12-1-18], as the first drop in shipments to China in over two years underlined cooling global demand. Exports by Asia’s fourth-largest economy grew 4.5 percent last month from a year earlier, missing market expectations as sales of computer memory chips slowed while demand from neighboring China shrank, the trade ministry data showed. Exports rose to $51.92 billion in November from $49.70 billion a year earlier while imports grew 11.4 percent to $46.78 billion, the preliminary data showed. As a result, South Korea posted a trade surplus of $5.14 billion. The bleak November foreign trade data, the first November data from a major exporting economy, came shortly before U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jin ping are due to hold a meeting in Buenos Aires, at which they are expected to discuss their trade dispute.”
–Hayoung Choi, Choonsik Yoo, “South Korea November exports grow less than expected as Trump-Xi summit eyed,” Reuters, November 30, 2018 6:25 pm