[News Today] EXPORTS GROW FOR 12TH MONTH

[LEAD]
Last month, South Korea's exports grew for the twelfth consecutive month. Semiconductors led this surge, hitting an all-time high. Clearly this is a great sign, but what does it take to sustain this momentum. We take a look.

[REPORT]
South Korea posted exports worth 58.7 billion dollars last month.

Not only is it the largest amount so far this year, it's also an all time high for any September in history.

The biggest contributor was the country's number one export item, semiconductors, which logged a record shipment of 13.6 billion dollars.

Jo Eek-no/ Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
Solid chip demand continues amid new smartphones, investment in AI servers and bigger demand for regular server replacements. Chip prices have risen by 31% on-year for DRAM and 14% for NAND Flash.

Automobiles, the second largest export, also shifted to gains for the first time in 4 months thanks to brisk sales of hybrid cars.

Exports of wireless communication devices, computers, ships and biohealth products also rose.

All this led to an on-year growth in outbound shipments extending for the 12th consecutive month.

However it's unclear whether this trend will continue.

The base effect resulting from last year's lackluster performance ends this month while economic prospects are still unclear for Korea's largest trade partners, the U.S. and China.

Joo Won/ Hyundai Research Institute
The pace of growth will slow down. Conditions in the U.S. and China are not great. Exports could take a hit past in first half of next year.

Attention is also drawn to the scale of new investment in AI by global tech firms and a potential policy shift in the wake of the U.S. presidential election.