SEOUL, July 22 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's export of information and communication technology (ICT) products logged a double-digit fall last month on soft demand for major export items, including semiconductors and display panels, a government report showed Monday.
The ICT export tumbled 22.4 percent over the year to 14.83 billion U.S. dollars in June, continuing to reduce for the eighth straight month, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
The import in the ICT sector amounted to 8.55 billion U.S. dollars, sending the trade surplus to 6.28 billion U.S. dollars last month.
Semiconductor export plunged 25.3 percent to 8.41 billion U.S. dollars on weak demand for chips and lower chip price.
Display panel shipment contracted 26.6 percent to 1.59 billion U.S. dollars amid the stiff competition, and mobile phone export retreated 22.6 percent to 990 million U.S. dollars on the slower growth of the global smartphone market.
The ICT export to China, South Korea's biggest trading partner, dropped 31.8 percent over the year to 7.41 billion U.S. dollars in June on falling demand for chips and display panels.
Export of ICT products to Vietnam gained 7.7 percent, but those to the United States and the European Union (EU) posted a double-digit reduction last month.
The ICT export to Japan declined 11 percent on weak demand for semiconductors that offset a triple-digit increase in shipment of display panels.