Exports decreased nearly three percent for the first 20 days of October because 2024 had fewer working days than 2023. 

According to preliminary data from the Korea Customs Service on Monday, the country’s outbound shipments came to 32-point-77 billion U.S. dollars during the cited period, down two-point-nine percent from a year earlier.

Average daily exports increased one percent, with the number of working days having decreased by half a day from a year ago to 12-and-a-half days.  

Exports of semiconductors, the country’s main export item, jumped 36-point-one percent during the period, while shipments of most other items decreased, with automobile exports down three-point-three percent. 

Imports dropped by ten-point-one percent year-on-year to 33-point-78 billion dollars during the period, resulting in a trade deficit of about one billion dollars.