A South Korean think tank says the country’s annual exports will hit a record high this year despite the protracted COVID-19 pandemic. 

In a meeting arranged by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on Thursday, Hyundai Research Institute expected outbound shipments this year will jump 18-point-one percent on-year to 605-point-3 billion U.S. dollars. 

The growth outlook surpasses the current record, 604-point-nine billion dollars, set in 2018. 

In its previous outlook in October last year, HRI estimated the 2021 exports will amount to 564-point-three billion dollars. 

The institute attributed its rosier outlook to recent export trends, as well as growing expectations for a swift recovery of the global economy.