Exports rose by almost 41 percent on-year in the first 20 days of August. 

According to tentative data from the Korea Customs Service on Monday, the country’s outbound shipments stood at 32-point-two billion U.S. dollars in the cited period, up 40-point-nine percent from a year earlier. 

Average daily exports also grew by 31-point-five percent, with the number of working days increasing by a day from last year. 

Shipments of semiconductors jumped nearly 40 percent, steel products roughly 57 percent, petroleum products some 55 percent and automobiles 37 percent. 

Data found that the nation’s exports to the United States climbed around 50 percent, those to China rose some 37 percent, while the EU and Japan saw surges of nearly 43 percent and 49 percent, respectively. 

Imports increased 52-point-one percent on-year to 35-point-eight billion dollars during the cited period. As a result, the country logged a trade deficit of three-point-five billion dollars during the 20-day period.