Seoul, Jan 14 (IANS): South Korea's exports of information and communication technology (ICT) products jumped 24 per cent in December from a year earlier, helped by robust sales of semiconductors, government data showed on Tuesday.

Outbound shipments of ICT products came to $22.66 billion last month, compared with $18.25 billion a year earlier, the Ministry of Science and ICT said in a press release.

The country's ICT imports in December stood at $13.32 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $9.33 billion in the sector.

By product, semiconductor exports jumped 31.1 per cent on-year to $14.51 billion on high demand for artificial intelligence-related chips.

Exports of computers and communications equipment soared 97.2 per cent to $1.62 billion over the cited period, while shipments of mobile phones rose 19.3 per cent to $1.12 billion, the release said.

Shipments of display panels fell 1.2 per cent to $1.69 billion due to slowing demand for TVs and personal computers.

By nation, combined shipments to China and Hong Kong climbed 13.4 percent on-year to $8.91 billion on increased sales of chips, displays and mobile phones.

Exports to Vietnam and Japan went up 2.7 percent and 14.3 per cent, respectively, to $3.02 billion and $360 million.

Shipments to the United States jumped 41.3 per cent on-year to $3.59 billion, while shipments to the European Union fell 3.9 per cent to $910 million.

For the whole of 2024, ICT exports rose 25.9 per cent on-year to $235 billion, while ICT imports gained 4.9 per cent to $143.2 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $91.8 billion, the ministry said.