SEJONG: South Korea’s exports of information and communication technology (ICT) products increased in May despite a significant dip in the country’s overall exports, the government said Wednesday.
Outbound shipments of ICT products amounted to US$14.28 billion in May, up 2 percent from the same month last year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Imports gained 1.2 percent on-year to $6.84 billion. The country’s trade surplus came to $7.44 billion. The rise in exports follows three consecutive months of an on-year drop.
“ICT exports posted a positive on-year growth for the first time since February despite a plunge in the country’s overall exports last month, as outbound shipments of key products, such as mobile phones and semiconductors, expanded,” the ministry said in a press release.
The country’s overall exports in May dropped 10.9 percent on-year to $42.39 billion, the ministry said earlier. In May, shipments of semiconductors, the country’s single largest export item, rose 4.3 percent on-year to $5.12 billion with shipments of mobile phones spiking 26.6 percent to $2.74 billion.
Shipments of display panels, on the other hand, shrank 4.8 percent to $2.2 billion, but this was mainly due to a cut in global prices of small and medium-sized display panels, the ministry said.
By country, shipments to China, the world’s single largest importer of South Korean products, gained 5.8 percent on-year to $7.45 billion, also making China the world’s single largest importer of South Korean ICT goods.
Shipments to the 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations jumped 29.7 percent to $2.1 billion while exports to the United States slipped 3.4 percent to $1.52 billion. Shipments to European Union states plunged 17.5 percent to $790 million.
