Seoul: South Korea's exports surged by 55.6 percent in the first 10 days of March compared to the same period last year, driven by strong demand for semiconductors, recent data revealed.

According to Yonhap News Agency, outbound shipments reached $21.5 billion from March 1-10, compared to $13.8 billion a year earlier, based on data from the Korea Customs Service. This increase marks the largest recorded exports for the period in question. Imports also rose by 21.7 percent year-on-year to $19.4 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $2.1 billion.

The data highlighted a significant 175.9 percent increase in semiconductor exports, reaching a record $7.6 billion amid the global boom in artificial intelligence technologies. This figure surpasses the previous record of $6.7 billion set last month. Chip exports represented 35.3 percent of South Korea's total exports during this period, an increase of 15.4 percentage points from the previous year.

While semiconductor exports saw impressive growth, other sectors experienced mixed results. Exports of petroleum products rose by 44.1 percent to $1.4 billion. However, automobile exports decreased by 13.9 percent year-on-year to $1.4 billion, and shipments of vessels fell by 61.9 percent to $465 million.

Examining export destinations, shipments to China, South Korea's largest trading partner, soared by 91.2 percent to $5.1 billion. Exports to the United States also surged by 69.9 percent to $4.2 billion despite existing tariff schemes.