Exports rose by about 13 percent on-year in the first 20 days of February.

According to tentative data from the Korea Customs Service on Monday, the country’s outbound shipments stood at 34-point-three billion U.S. dollars in the cited period, up 13-point-one percent from a year earlier.

Average daily exports grew by 17-point-two percent, with the number of working days falling by half a day from last year.

Shipments of semiconductors and petroleum products rose 18-point-one percent and 56 percent, respectively, while exports of wireless communication devices and auto parts dropped 17-point-seven percent and eleven percent each.

Exports to China rose 12-point-four percent, while U.S.-bound commerce increased seven percent.

Imports rose 12-point-nine percent on-year to 36 billion dollars during the cited period, resulting in a trade deficit of one-point-68 billion dollars.