Exports down 14.8 percent during first 10 days of July

Korea's exports fell 14.8 percent on year in the first 10 days of July due to sluggish shipments of chips, data showed Tuesday.

The country's outbound shipments reached $13.3 billion in the July 1-10 period, compared with $15.5 billion tallied a year earlier, according to the data from the Korea Customs Service.

Imports fell 26.9 percent on year to $15.5 billion during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of $2.27 billion.

By sector, exports of chips, the backbone of the Korean economy, slid 36.8 percent over the period to $1.82 billion.

Those of automobiles, on the other hand, gained 25.2 percent to $1.44 billion, the data showed.

Exports of steel and petroleum products moved down 14.5 percent and 51.3 percent to $1 billion and $970 million, respectively, over the period.

Outbound shipments of ships jumped 74 percent to $660 million.

By destination, exports to China, the top trading partner, fell 20.6 percent to $2.74 billion, apparently as the anticipated impact of its economic reopening has been delayed.

Shipments to the United States edged down 9 percent to $2.5 billion, while those to the European Union gained 22.4 percent to $1.49 billion. Exports to Vietnam shed 32.5 percent to $1.12 billion.

In June, Korea's outbound shipments fell 6 percent on year to $54.24 billion. But the month posted the smallest on-year export decline so far this year, possibly indicating the country's exports may rebound in the second half of this year.

The country reported a trade surplus for the first time in 16 months in June.

As of Monday, Korea's exports so far this year had reached $320.4 billion, down 12.5 percent from the same period in 2022. The trade deficit so far has come to $28.7 billion.

Yonhap