Exports rose 20 percent on-year in the first 20 days of December. 

According to tentative data from the Korea Customs Service on Tuesday, the country’s outbound shipments stood at 36-point-nine billion U.S. dollars in the cited period. 

Average daily exports also grew by 20 percent, with the number of working days at 15-point-five days, unchanged from last year. 

Shipments of semiconductors and petroleum products rose 27-point-five percent and 88-point-eight percent, respectively, while auto exports decreased four-point-one percent. 

Exports to China rose 22-point-five percent and by 19-point-four percent to the United States.

Imports increased 42-point-one percent on-year to 39-point-six billion dollars during the cited period.