South Korea's export volume posted the sharpest gain in four months in January thanks to brisk shipments of semiconductors and cosmetics.

According to trade data released by Bank of Korea on Monday, the export volume index last month rose 14-point-seven percent year-on-year to 147-point-23.

The index grew for the third month since November and last month's increase was the highest since September when it posted 19-point-six percent growth.

By export item, the index for electric and electronic devices jumped more than 19 percent led by increased shipments of chips, including DRAM.

With the letup in China's retaliation over South Korea's THAAD antimissile shield deployment, exports of cosmetics, medicine and chemical goods also posted high growth last month.