South Korean exports of instant noodles jumped more than 18 percent in the first half of 2016 from a year ago, data showed Friday, due apparently to the popularity of Korean pop music and dramas overseas.

Overseas shipments of instant noodles, called ramyeon here, came to $123 million in the January-June period, up 18.3 percent from $104 million a year earlier, according to the data by the state-run Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corp.

By volume, exports stood at up to 33,300 tons in the six-month period, up 29.5 percent from the 25,700 tons a year earlier.

China was the largest destination with exports to the world's most populous nation skyrocketing 48.2 percent on-year to $23.5 million, which accounted for 19.1 percent of the total.

The United States was the second-largest export market with $18.1 million, trailed by Japan with $9.2 million and Taiwan with $8.3 million.

Exports to Southeast Asian nations also grew at a fast clip in the first half amid the craze of Korean pop culture in the region.

Shipments to Malaysia rose at the highest on-year rate of 95.4 percent, with exports to Singapore soaring 52.3 percent. Exports to Indonesia and Vietnam also surged 41 percent and 32.5 percent each.

With instant noodles catching on among foreign consumers and growth of the domestic market stagnating, South Korean noodle makers are doubling down on expanding their overseas markets by introducing new products.

Nongshim Co., South Korea's largest noodle maker, saw its overseas sales climb 13 percent on-year to more than $300 million in the first half, despite sluggish domestic sales. In particular, sales of its spicy instant noodle "Shin ramyeon" in China surged 16.6 percent to $126 million.

Nongshim said it plans to rev up efforts to increase sales of its "Kimchi ramyeon" that is gaining popularity in China, the US and Southeast Asia.

Samyang Corp. said its overseas sales came to around 30 billion won ($27 million) in the first half, more than doubling from the same period a year earlier, thanks to the popularity of its spicy chicken roasted noodle. (Yonhap)