South Korea exports surge 56% in August driven by chip shipments

South Korea's exports surged 56 percent year-on-year during the first 20 days of August, reaching $55.2 billion. This represents the highest level for this specific period in any August, according to data from the Korea Customs Service.

The growth was driven largely by a massive increase in semiconductor shipments, which nearly tripled to $26 billion. Chips now account for 47.2 percent of total exports. Other sectors seeing growth included petroleum products, up 56.4 percent, and steel, up 9.7 percent. Conversely, automobile exports fell by 45.1 percent.

In terms of trade balance, imports rose 19 percent to $41.2 billion, resulting in a $14 billion trade surplus. Major export destinations included China, where shipments more than doubled to $15.26 billion, and the United States, which saw a 59.4 percent increase to $7.97 billion.