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SEOUL, Feb. 22 (Reuters) – South Korean exports in the first 20 days of February expanded 16.7% from a year earlier, customs group data showed Monday, faster than a 10.5% increase during the Jan period. 1-20, supporting trade recovery.
Data breaches show that the recovery has been supported by increased sales in key trading products and strong global demand.
According to results, outdoor loads of semiconductors, cars and mobile phones exceeded 27.5%, 45.9% and 33.6%, respectively, in February 1-20, while oil products and computer margins slipped 5.7 % and 4.8% each man.
With destination, exports to China, the United States and the European Union increased 32.7%, 14% and 53.6%, respectively.
Daily exports, however, jumped 29.2% year-on-year, with 1.5 fewer working days in the comparable period of 2020 due to the country’s Lunar New Year holidays.
Imports also jumped 24.1%, much sharper than the January 1-20 increase of 2.4%, leading to a temporary trade deficit of $ 1.21 billion for the period.
Full-month data for February will be released on March 1st. (Reporting by Joori Roh; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Sam Holmes)