South Korea's exports in July continued to drop but the decline was in the single digits for the first time since the fallout from the pandemic started impacting the economy.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the country's outbound shipments in July fell seven percent from a year earlier to 42-point-eight billion dollars.

The slump in exports is continuing for a fifth consecutive month, but the pace of the decline has slowed.

The ministry said Korean exports are on the path to recovery for the third month despite lackluster global trade and sluggish exports of other major economies. 

The daily average volume of shipments contracted more than 18 percent in May and June, improving to minus seven percent in July.

The overall export volume has also recovered to the 40 billion dollar range for the first time in four months.

South Korea posted a trade surplus of four-point-27 billion dollars in July, continuing a surplus streak for the third month. 

Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo said that while it is too soon to jump to conclusions, July's export figures are meaningful and may be a positive sign for recovery.