S. Korea's IT exports drop 6.4 pct in October

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, Nov. 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korean exports of information technology (IT)
products fell more than 6 percent on-year in October due to a sharp decline in
overseas demand for semiconductors, a government report said Wednesday.

Overseas shipments of semiconductors, mobile phones, display panels and other IT
products decreased 6.4 percent from a year earlier to US$12.2 billion last month,
with imports dropping 6.6 percent to $6.3 billion, according to the report by the
Ministry of Knowledge Economy.
October marks the second month this year that the nation's IT exports have
fallen. In August outbound shipments dipped 0.5 percent to $11.4 billion.
According to the report, semiconductor exports were down 19.1 percent at $2.7
billion, as a global glut that began in early 2007 continued to put downward
pressure on prices.
Exports of display panels rose 3.8 percent to $2.4 billion on increased demand
for high-definition TV sets, with outbound mobile phone shipments surging 13.7
percent to $3.7 billion.
Exports to China, the European Union (EU) and Japan all declined, although this
was in part due to record high gains posted in October 2007, when IT exports
surged 20 percent to a record $13 billion.
Exports to China declined 1 percent, while those for the EU and Japan sank 14.5
percent and 26.4 percent each. Shipments to the United States gained 6.1 percent,
fueled by high demand for locally-made premium mobile phones, the report showed.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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