trade balance-September
Exports extend gains to 11th month in Sept. on chips
By Kang Yoon-seung
SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's exports have extended their gains to 11 consecutive months by rising 16.7 percent, maintaining solid growth despite the growing concerns over the spread of the COVID-19 variants around the globe.
Outbound shipments came to US$55.8 billion last month, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Imports climbed 31 percent to $51.6 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $4.2 billion. It marked the 17th consecutive month for the country to post a trade surplus.
The September exports were slightly above what the market had been expecting.
According to a poll by Yonhap Infomax, the financial arm of Yonhap News Agency, the country's September exports were estimated to have risen 15 percent.
South Korea's economy grew slightly faster than expected in the second quarter, thanks to a robust recovery of exports and service sectors, according to the data that the central bank provided last month.
The nation's economy grew 0.8 percent in the April-June period from three months earlier, 0.1 percentage point higher than earlier expected, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.
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