South Korea is one of the global leaders in the manufacturing sector, bolstered by its competitiveness in autos and semiconductors, a local think tank said Wednesday.

The Institute for International Trade (IIT) said in its latest annual report that as of 2010, South Korea was the seventh largest exporting nation in the world.

It also said that the country was the fifth largest manufacturer of automobiles and No. 2 in the world in terms of semiconductor sales.

The institute under the Korea International Trade Association said South Korea was the ninth largest trading nation and had the sixth largest foreign reserves last year, while its nominal gross domestic product was the 15th largest in the world.

Reflecting the size of Asia’s fourth largest economy, the findings showed the country ranked fourth among importers of crude oil and ninth in its use of energy resources.

In contrast to its leading numbers in manufacturing, South Korea’s service sector exports placed 14th in the world. Its population growth stood at 204th, edging up just 0.3 percent, with its annual average work hours standing at 2,193 hours, the highest in the world, the IIT said.

(Yonhap News)