South Korea exports grew 20.6% in February, beating forecasts

• South Korea's exports grew for a 16th straight month in February and at a faster pace than expected, with the trade balance in goods swinging back to the positive territory.
• Exports in February expanded 20.6% from a year earlier to $53.91 billion, trade ministry data showed on Tuesday, beating a forecast for 18.2% growth in a Reuters' poll and faster than the 15.2% in January.
• A breakdown by items showed exports of semiconductors jumped 24% year-on-year, while those for petrochemicals, oil and steel products also surged 24.7%, 66.2% and 40.1%, respectively.

Cargo bound for sits on the tarmac next to Korean Air Lines Co. freight aircraft at the company's cargo terminal in Incheon International Airport in Incheon, South Korea, on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2020.

SeongJoon Cho | Bloomberg | Getty Images

South Korea's exports grew for a 16th straight month in February and at a faster pace than expected, with the trade balance in goods swinging back to the positive territory.

Exports in February expanded 20.6% from a year earlier to $53.91 billion, trade ministry data showed on Tuesday, beating a forecast for 18.2% growth in a Reuters' poll and faster than the 15.2% in January.

A breakdown by items showed exports of semiconductors jumped 24% year-on-year, while those for petrochemicals, oil and steel products also surged 24.7%, 66.2% and 40.1%, respectively.

By destination, exports to China, South Korea's biggest trading partner, gained 16%, and those to the United States and European Union rose 20.9% and 8.6%, respectively.

Imports, meanwhile, jumped 25.1% in February to $53.07 billion, with those of crude oil, gas and coal totaling $12.5 billion. That brought the trade balance to a $0.84 billion profit, after recording a record $4.83 billion deficit in January.

South Korean financial markets are closed on Tuesday due to public holiday.