South Korea’s terms of trade improved for the ninth consecutive month in November as import prices fell at a faster pace than export costs, the central bank said Monday.

The country’s net terms-of-trade index for goods ― a gauge of trade terms ― came in at 89.7 in November, up 2.7 percent from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.

The index is calculated by dividing the export price index by the import price index. The base year is 2010 with a benchmark index of 100.

The BOK said import prices declined at a faster clip than export costs, improving Korea’s net terms-of-trade index for goods from the previous year.

Korea’s income terms-of-trade index, another gauge of trade terms, sharply improved last month from a year earlier as the volume of exports picked up.

The income terms-of-trade index reached 118.5 percent in November, up 4.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the BOK. (Yonhap News)