South Korea's exports on growing trend in September

South Korea's exports are likely to gain ground in September on steady overseas demand for IT products, autos and ships, data showed Wednesday. The value of Korea's outbound shipments reached US$13.32 billion during the first 10 days of this month, up 14.5 percent from a year earlier, according to estimates by the finance ministry and the state-run customs agency. Imports also gained 1.8 percent on-year to reach $14.43 billion over the cited period, the data showed. Given that exports fast increase around the end of the month, the country is expected to log a trade surplus for the 20th consecutive month in September, the ministry said. The country's exports have reached $382 billion through Sept. 10 this year, up 2.1 percent from a year earlier, while imports have declined 1.5 percent on-year to amount to $35.6 billion over the cited period, according to the data. South Korea's exports came to $46.38 billion last month, up 7.7 percent from the same period a year earlier. Its imports grew 1 percent on-year in August to $41.53 billion, according to the data.