S.Korea's export volume keeps rising for 12 months in August

 South Korea's export volume kept rising for 12 straight months amid the global demand recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, central bank data showed Wednesday.

The export volume index stood at 116.61 in August, up 11.3 percent from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).

It continued to rise since September last year amid the global demand recovery from the pandemic shock.

In terms of volume, export for machinery and equipment soared 21.2 percent, and shipment for computer, electronic and optical devices advanced 18.3 percent last month.

The export value index surged 35.2 percent to 127.82 in August, after jumping 31.5 percent in the previous month.

Export value for coal and oil products and the primary metal products spiked more than 50 percent due to expensive raw materials.

The import volume index increased 13.5 percent from a year earlier to 120.11 in August, keeping an upward trend for the 12th consecutive month.

The import value index jumped 45.2 percent to 143.20 in August, marking the fastest growth in more than 11 years amid the higher price for raw materials.