SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s exports rose for an 11th straight month in August, but the pace of growth was weaker than the previous month and market expectations as demand for computer chips slowed, while auto sales remained sluggish.
Overseas sales by Asia’s fourth-largest economy rose 11.4% year-on-year to $57.90 billion, trade data showed on Sunday, slowing from a gain of 13.9% in the previous month, which was the fastest in six months.
It was also weaker than a 13.0% increase tipped in a Reuters survey of economists.
Growth in semiconductor exports slowed to a five-month low, while auto sales fell for a third consecutive month due to temporary factors, such as wage negotiations and factory suspensions to improve production lines at some firms.
By destination, exports to China rose at a slower pace, but growth in U.S.-bound shipments quickened. Exports to the European Union snapped a six-month run of declines and surged 16.1% to a record high of $6.4 billion.
Yet, exports are heading towards a record-high performance this year, trade minister Ahn Duk-geun said. “Growing trends are seen across major export markets.”
Imports rose 6.0% in August to $54.07 billion, after a 10.5% jump in July, which was the steepest since September 2022. It was slightly lower than a gain of 6.3% expected by economists.
As a result, the country posted a trade surplus of $3.83 billion in August, wider than the previous month’s $3.60 billion.
(This story has been refiled to correct grammatical errors in paragraphs 1 and 3)
(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
