SEOUL (XINHUA) – South Korea’s export grew for the 11th straight month due to strong demand for locally-made tech and oil products, government data showed yesterday.
Export, which accounts for around half of the export-driven economy, rose 11.4 per cent from a year earlier to USD57.90 billion in August, continuing to climb since October 2023, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Import gained 6.0 per cent over the year to USD54.07 billion in August, sending the trade surplus to USD3.83 billion.
The trade balance stayed in black for the 15th consecutive month since June 2023.
Of the country’s 15 major export items, seven products saw an increase in outbound shipment.
Semiconductor export soared 38.8 per cent over the year to USD11.88 billion in August, keeping an upward trend for the 10th successive month.
The rapid expansion was attributed to chip demand relevant to artificial intelligence (AI), higher memory chip prices, and the launch of new smartphones.
Mobile device shipment jumped 50.4 per cent to USD1.81 billion thanks to the global smartphone market recovery, while computer export almost tripled to USD1.48 billion on the continued demand for solid state drive (SSD).
Display panel export declined 4.9 per cent to USD1.82 billion last month, marking the first fall in 13 months.
Automotive shipment reduced 4.3 per cent to USD5.07 billion, with auto parts export sliding by 3.5 per cent to USD1.84 billion.
General machinery shipment decreased 5.9 per cent to USD3.86 billion, but export for ships spiked 80.0 per cent to USD2.84 billion owing to higher demand for high-value-added ships such as LNG carriers and container ships.
Shipment for oil products and petrochemicals increased in single digits to USD4.53 billion and USD4.18 billion each on robust global demand that offset lower prices.
Dubai crude, South Korea’s benchmark, averaged USD77.60 per barrel in August, down 10.2 per cent compared to August 2023.
Steel export retreated 1.7 per cent to USD2.81 billion, while shipment for home appliances, textiles and secondary batteries shrank in single digits to USD620 million, USD790 million, and USD710 million respectively.
Export to the United States advanced 11.1 per cent from a year earlier to USD9.96 billion in August, maintaining an upward trend for the 13th successive month since August 2023.
Shipment to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) added 1.7 per cent to USD9.82 billion on strong demand from Vietnam, and export to the European Union (EU) jumped 16.1 per cent to USD6.43 billion.
Export to Japan, Latin America and India gained to USD2.52 billion, USD2.56 billion and USD1.64 billion each last month.
