Seoul: South Korea's exports surged by 45.3 percent year-on-year in the first ten days of August, fueled by robust global demand for memory chips, according to data released Tuesday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, outbound shipments reached US$21.3 billion during the August 1-10 period, a significant increase from $14.6 billion recorded in the same period of the previous year. This marks the highest amount ever recorded for the first ten days of August. The Korea Customs Service data also revealed that imports rose 23.1 percent year-on-year to $19.5 billion, leading to a trade surplus of $1.8 billion.

Breaking down by sector, exports of memory chips saw a substantial increase of 155.4 percent, totaling $9.95 billion. This growth is attributed to the ongoing global boom in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Chips made up 46.8 percent of total exports during this period, a rise of 20.1 percentage points from the previous year. Petroleum product exports increased by 65.3 percent to $1.99 billion, while automotive exports fell sharply by 80.9 percent, amounting to $182 million.

Regional export data showed that shipments to China more than doubled to $6.7 billion, and exports to Vietnam rose 45.4 percent to $2.39 billion. Conversely, exports to the United States, a key trading partner, experienced a slight decline of 0.2 percent to $2 billion. Cumulatively, exports for the year up to Monday reached $616.3 billion, reflecting a 50.3 percent increase from the previous year. The total trade surplus for the year stands at $169.5 billion.