South Korea's current account surplus shrank from a month earlier in October as imports grew while the country's deficit in the service sector widened, preliminary data from the central bank showed Wednesday.

The current account surplus came to $8.96 billion last month, compared with a revised $10.54 billion surplus in September, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.

The October figure, however, marked a slight increase from a surplus of $8.74 billion posted in the same month last year.

October also marked the 44th consecutive month of a surplus.

The on-month drop was partly attributed to a rise in imports, which surged 10.54 percent from the previous month to $36.7 billion, outpacing a 4.86 percent gain in exports.

The surplus in the goods account dipped to $10.74 billion in October from a $12.04 billion surplus a month earlier, according to the BOK.

The deficit in the service sector widened to $1.99 billion from a revised $1.73 billion deficit in September.

The increase in the service account deficit was attributed to a rise in the deficit in the travel account, which expanded to $850 million from $710 million in the previous month.

The deficit in the intellectual property account also widened to $680 million in October from a $260 million deficit in September.

The prime income account surplus came to $590 million in October, compared with a $740 million surplus in the previous month.

In the first 10 months of the year, the current account surplus came to $87.89 billion, compared with a $66.66 billion surplus in the same period last year, according to the BOK.

The surplus in the goods account climbed to $101.82 billion from a $71.73 billion surplus over the cited period, while the deficit in the service sector also widened to $16.12 billion from $3.48 billion. (Yonhap)