South Korea's exports are expected to post record-high performance this year, according to a research body under one of the nation's major business groups.

In a report released Monday, the Korea International Trade Association's(KITA) Institute for International Trade projected exports to jump nine-point-one percent on-year to reach 690 billion U.S. dollars, which would be the highest to date.

With an estimated one-percent on-year increase in imports to total 649 billion dollars, the institute expected a trade surplus of 41 billion dollars.

KITA, which had previously forecast outbound shipments to rise seven-point-five percent this year, said the high performance will likely be led by semiconductors and IT devices, automobiles and shipbuilding.

Semiconductor exports are expected to increase 31-point-eight percent on-year due largely to rapid growth in the artificial intelligence(AI) industry and a rising demand for chips in China.