The Export-Import Bank of Korea projects the country's exports in the first quarter will rise about ten percent from the same period last year. 

The leading index on exports rose five-point-four percent year-on-year to 120-point-one for the first quarter, marking the first increase in nine quarters since late 2014.

The Eximbank's Overseas Economic Research Institute forecasts that advanced economies, including the U.S. and the euro zone, will enter a recovery phase while emerging markets such as China, Brazil and Russia will continue to grow.

The institute says a hike in global oil prices and semiconductor, display and steel costs play a role in its forecast.