SEOUL (XINHUA) – South Korea’s export grew for the 14th straight month due to strong demand for locally-made semiconductors, government data showed yesterday.
Export, which accounts for about half of the export-driven economy, rose 1.4 per cent over the year to USD56.35 billion in November, continuing to expand since October last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Import slipped 2.4 per cent to USD50.74 billion last month, sending the trade surplus to USD5.61 billion. The trade balance stayed in black for the 18th consecutive month since June last year.
Of the country’s 15 major export items, five products saw an expansion in outbound shipment.
Semiconductor export jumped 30.8 per cent from a year earlier to USD12.45 billion in November, maintaining an upward trend for the 13th successive month. The double-digit growth was attributed to demand for high-end chips such as DDR5 and high bandwidth memory products used in generative artificial intelligence chipsets.
Display panel shipment tumbled 22.0 per cent to USD1.49 billion, with mobile device export retreating 3.3 per cent to USD1.7 billion.
Computer export more than doubled to USD1.35 billion on steady demand for solid-state drives. Automotive shipment dropped 13.6 per cent to USD5.64 billion in November compared with the same month of last year, turning downward in three months on the back of lower car production in domestic factories.
Auto parts export declined eight per cent to USD1.77 billion, while general machinery shipment dipped 18.9 per cent to USD3.99 billion.
Shipment for oil products plunged 18.7 per cent to USD3.65 billion due to cheaper crude oil, while petrochemical export decreased 5.6 per cent to USD3.57 billion.
Dubai crude, South Korea’s benchmark, averaged USD72.6 per barrel in November, down 13.1 per cent from a year earlier.
Steel export added 1.3 per cent to USD2.69 billion, but those for home appliances and secondary batteries shrank in double digits to USD570 million and USD660 million each.
