SEOUL: South Korean exports suffered a sharper contraction in January, falling for a 14th straight month as worsening sentiment over the new coronavirus and the effect from fewer working days outweighed improving global demand for semiconductors.
Overseas sales tumbled 6.1% at the first month of 2020 from a year earlier, trade ministry data showed on Saturday, worse than a 5.2% drop in December but beating a median 7.8% decline tipped in a Reuters poll.
Overseas sales of semiconductors, the country's top export, accounting for one-fifth of its total exports, fell 3.4% year-on-year, logging the smallest decline in 14 months. On Monday, the Chinese government has extended the week-long Lunar New Year holiday by three days to Feb. 2 as it seeks to limit the spread of the coronavirus. The holiday, which began on Jan. 24, had been due to end on Jan. 30.
The ministry said China-bound sales fell mainly due to the holiday comparisons, and that exports to China's Hubei province, where the epidemic originated, accounts for only 0.3% of total exports, meaning the direct impact will be limited.
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