Exports of semiconductors, one of the country's key export items, nose-dived 30 percent on-year to a little over $7.6 billion, mainly due to falling global market prices for memory and lower demand for system chips, the data showed.

This is the sixth month in a row that semiconductor exports have contracted vis-a-vis the year before.

Shipments of displays, another key ICT product for Asia's fourth-largest economy, stood at slightly above $1.6 billion, marking a 21.5 percent drop from a year earlier due to stiffer overseas competition mainly in the liquid crystal display sector.

The data showed exports of mobile phones falling a sharp 33.9 percent on-year to $930 million for the one-month period, amid a slowdown in the global market.

On the other hand, global demand for locally made rechargeable batteries rose 5.2 percent to $620 million, with sales of organic light-emitting diode panels, increasing 3.7 percent from a year earlier to $620 million.

By region, shipments to China, including Hong Kong, dropped 31.5 percent to around $7.1 billion, with figures for the United States backtracking 15.5 percent on-year to just under $1.5 billion. Exports to the European Union, another key market, fell 16 percent to $850 million.

The latest data showed exports to Vietnam moved up 1.6 percent to $1.9 billion with corresponding numbers for Japan standing at $370 million, for a gain of 3.5 percent from the same month in 2018.

The ministry said the country imported some $9.7 billion worth of ICT products for the whole of last month, leading to a surplus topping $4.6 billion. (Yonhap)