IT beats effects of currency

Korean exports of information technology goods rose more than 10 percent in January from a year earlier, boosted by robust sales of semiconductors and flat panel products, a government report showed yesterday.
Korea shipped $9.8 billion worth of IT products last month, up 11.6 percent from a year earlier, the Ministry of Information and Communication said. During the month, the nation had a trade surplus of $4.8 billion in the IT sector, it added.
January’s export growth comes despite a firmer local currency against the U.S. dollar, a seasonal decrease in demand for products and price cuts in memory chips and flat screens.
The ministry said exports of semiconductors jumped 60.6 percent from a year earlier to $2 billion. Overseas shipments of flat panel goods also rose 16.8 percent to $1.4 billion, the ministry said.
Mobile phone exports grew 2.1 percent to $2.2 billion, snapping a three-month losing streak, it added.