Exports rose more than 20 percent on-year in the first ten days of August.

According to tentative data from the Korea Customs Service on Thursday, the country’s outbound shipments stood at 15-point-seven billion U.S. dollars in the cited period, up 23-point-two percent from a year earlier.

Average daily exports rose by eight-point-seven percent, with the number of working days increasing by one from last year to come in at eight-point-five.

Shipments of petroleum products and autos soared 177 percent and 191-point-nine percent, respectively, while exports of semiconductors and wireless communication devices slipped five-point-one percent and 17-point-seven percent each.

Exports to the United States and the European Union increased 17-point-five percent and 66-point-two percent, respectively, while outbound commodities to China declined two-point-eight percent.

Imports rose 34-point-one percent on-year to 23-point-four billion dollars during the cited period, posting a trade deficit of nearly seven-point-68 billion dollars.