S. Korea exports rise to $54.69 in Jan. ’23

South Korea’s headline exports rose for a fourth straight month to reach $54.69 billion in January, as demand for semiconductors continued to improve, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.

The figure is higher than economists’ forecasts for a 17.6 per cent increase. While, overall imports declined 7.8 per cent in January after dropping 10.8 per cent in December, as the trade surplus narrowed to $300 million.

Other drivers of South Korea’s exports include automobiles, petrochemicals and shipbuilding, which underpin the nation’s broad industrial base. Automobile shipments rose 24.8 per cent from a year earlier in January.