SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s exports for the first 20 days of January soared 22.0% from a year earlier, customs agency data showed on Friday, while imports surged 38.4%, resulting in a provisional trade deficit of $5.63 billion.
Breakdown of the data showed outbound shipments of semiconductors, cars and petroleum products jumped 29.5%, 22.8% and 84.0%, respectively.
By destination, exports to China, the United States and European Union, during the period, rose 18.8%, 28.0% and 15.8% respectively.
(Reporting by Joori Roh; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
