SEOUL, Dec 21 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korea’s export logged a double-digit growth in the first 20 days of Dec, thanks to global demand recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, customs office data showed today.
The outbound shipment amounted to 36.9 billion U.S. dollars, in the period from Dec 1 to Dec 20 (yesterday), up 20 percent from a year earlier, according to Korea Customs Service.
Semiconductor export jumped 27.5 percent, and shipment for oil products and computer peripherals soared 88.8 percent and 73.9 percent, respectively.
Automotive export shrank 4.1 percent, with shipment for telecommunication devices, such as, smartphones, dropping 12.8 percent.
Export to China, South Korea’s biggest trading partner, gained 22.5 percent in the 20-day period, and those to the United States, the European Union (EU) and Vietnam, grew in double digits.
Import surged 42.1 percent from a year earlier to 39.6 billion dollars, in the first 20 days of Dec, sending the trade deficit to 2.7 billion dollars.– NNN-YONHAP
