Seoul: South Korea's exports experienced a 5.9 percent increase year-on-year in July, driven by strong global demand for semiconductors, as revealed by government data on Friday. Outbound shipments reached a total of US$60.8 billion for the month.

According to Yonhap News Agency, data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy indicated that imports rose by 0.7 percent year-on-year to $54.2 billion. This increase resulted in a trade surplus of $6.61 billion for the country.

The semiconductor sector played a significant role in this growth, with exports in this category surging by 31.6 percent compared to the previous year, amounting to $14.71 billion. This figure represents the highest level of semiconductor exports ever recorded for the month of July.