SOUTH KOREAN EXPORTS REACH RECORD HIGH IN 2005.

SEOUL, Jan. 2 Asia Pulse - South Korea's exports gained 12.2 per cent from a year earlier to a record US$284.7 billion in 2005 to mark the third straight year of a double-digit growth, a government report said Sunday.

The preliminary tally released by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy also said the country's imports rose 16.3 per cent to $261.2 billion on a customs clearance basis, resulting in a trade surplus of $23.5 billion.

In 2004, exports grew 31.0 per cent, compared with the year before, to reach $253.8 billion.

"Last year's growth signifies that the quality of South Korean-made products, particularly in semiconductors and shipmaking, is now world-class," said Shin Dong-shik, head of the ministry's trade bureau.

South Korean exports fared well in 2005, despite higher crude oil prices and the U.S. dollar's depreciation against the Korean won that eroded the price competitiveness of domestically-made goods in the global market, he added.

South Korean exports were led by autos, semiconductors, general machinery, petrochemicals, ships and steel, the official said. Semiconductors and autos were the top two export items, each accounting for more than 10 per cent of the country's total exports.

Shin said the total export volume slightly fell short of the projected $285 billion at the start of the year, but noted that South Korea was able to export more than $1 billion worth of goods every day last year, compared to $910 million the year before.