S. Korean IT trade surplus reaches US$5.74 bln in Jan

SEOUL, Feb. 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's trade surplus in the information technology (IT) sector amounted to US$5.74 billion in January due to a surge in overseas demand for locally made goods, a government report showed Wednesday.

Exports of semiconductors, mobile phones and other IT products jumped 60.1
percent on-year to $11.07 billion last month, with imports gaining 29.9 percent
to $5.33 billion, according to the report by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy.
Last month's exports represent the fifth straight month that exports have
exceeded the $11 billion mark. It is also the second month in a row that the
trade surplus in the industry surpassed $5 billion.
According to the report, exports of semiconductors shot up 116.8 percent annually
last month, thanks mainly to a rise in demand for smart phones and other hightech
products. Total exports topped $3.25 billion.
Outbound shipments display panels rose 96.4 percent annually to $2.43 billion
although overseas mobile phone sales dipped 3.4 percent to $2.12 billion.
China and Hong Kong were the biggest importers of Korean-made IT products last
month, buying more than $519 billion worth of goods, followed by the European
Union with $1.31 billion and the United States with $1.19 billion. Outbound
shipments to Japan stood at $520 million last month for a gain of 33.6 percent
on-year, according to the report.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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