South Korea posted a merchandise trade surplus of $3.80 billion in November, the Customs Office said on Friday.
That exceeded expectations for a surplus of $3.50 billion and was up from $1.63 billion in October.
Exports rose 7.8 percent on year, also topping forecasts for a gain of 7.5 percent after climbing 5.1 percent in the previous month.
Imports dropped an annual 11.6 percent versus expectations for a decline of 10.0 percent following the 9.7 percent contraction a month earlier.
