2 Minutes Read * June exports increased by 39.7% year over year, while imports increased by 40.7 percent. * Chip exports increased by 34.4 percent year over year, extending growth into the 12th month. (Includes information from the data) (Reuters) – SEOUL, July 1 (Reuters) – In June, South Korean exports grew by double digits for the fourth month in a row, albeit at a slower pace, thanks to steady economic recovery in major markets across the world and sustained high demand for memory chips and automobiles. Exports increased 39.7% in June compared to the same month a year ago, reaching $54.80 billion, the third-highest figure on record, according to commerce ministry data released on Thursday. It was the ninth straight month of expansion, above the 33.6 percent average of 17 economist projections in a Reuters survey. In May, exports increased by 45.6 percent, the most since August 1988. The country’s monthly trade data is keenly monitored because it is the first among major exporting nations to be released and is usually seen as a signal for global trade. Sales of semiconductors, the country’s main export, increased by 34.4 percent for the 12th month in a row, while sales of autos and petrochemical goods increased by 62.5 percent and 68.5 percent, respectively. Exports to China, the United States, and the European Union each climbed 14.3%, 51.9 percent, and 65.3 percent, respectively, while exports to South Korea’s six other main trading partners increased as well. Imports increased 40.7 percent in June, exceeding predictions of a 33.0 percent increase, according to Thursday’s report. The trade surplus was $4.44 billion, up from $2.94 billion the previous month. The finance ministry upped its 2021 growth prediction to an 11-year high of 4.2 percent earlier this week, with an 18.5 percent increase in exports driving the rise. (Jori Roh contributed reporting, and Christopher Cushing edited the piece.)/n
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