SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's exports of information and communications technology (ICT) products hit a record high in July due to soaring semiconductor demand, government data showed Friday.
The ICT products' shipments surged 140.6 percent from a year earlier to 53.36 billion U.S. dollars in July, marking the highest for any July, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources.
The ICT export stayed above 50 billion dollars for a second consecutive month, continuing to go up for 18 straight months since February 2025.
Semiconductor exports spiked 178.8 percent to 41.02 billion dollars on global investment in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure that led to higher demand and price hikes for memory chips.
Display panel shipments added 0.5 percent to 1.77 billion dollars, and mobile phone exports jumped 62.6 percent to 1.55 billion dollars.
Shipments for computers and peripherals skyrocketed 353.9 percent to 4.94 billion dollars amid robust demand for solid-state drives (SSDs), and communications equipment exports advanced 18.7 percent to 240 million dollars.
Imports of ICT products mounted 37.3 percent over the year to 18.3 billion dollars in July, sending the trade surplus in the ICT industry to 35.06 billion dollars.
The trade surplus hovered above 30 billion dollars for a third successive month.
Imports of chips, mobile phones and computers posted double-digit growth last month. ■