Korean exports up 3.1% in March, rising for 6th straight month thanks to chips

Containers for exports are stacked at a pier in the southeastern port city of Busan in this file photo taken on Jan. 1, 2024. [YONHAP]

Korea's exports rose for the sixth straight month in March on the back of a robust performance by chips, whose exports saw their highest gains in two years.

Total outbound shipments gained 3.1 percent on-year to $56.5 billion last month, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Chip exports gained for the fifth consecutive month, totaling $11.7 billion in March.

Imports decreased 12.3 percent on-year to $52.2 billion last month, resulting in a trade surplus of $4.28 billion.

Exports, a key economic growth engine for Korea, rebounded in October after 13 months of an on-year decline. Outbound shipments decreased 7.4 percent on-year in 2023 amid the sluggish performance of chips coupled with global economic uncertainties.

BY JIN MIN-JI [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]