South Korea's healthcare and cosmetics exports rose 42 percent last month from a year ago, led by shipments of COVID-19-related medical devices, industry data showed Monday.

According to data from the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI), South Korea's exports of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and medical devices came to $1.69 billion in August, marking the 12th consecutive month of increase since September last year.

The rise is largely attributable to growing demand for coronavirus test kits and other related medical devices, as well as a rebound in cosmetics exports, the data showed.

Exports of medicine reached $660 million, up 70.9 percent from a year ago, while medical devices exports rose 51.7 percent to $430 million. Cosmetics exports were up 15.6 percent to $599 million.

By country, China was the biggest market for such products, followed by Germany, the United States and Japan.

"Annual exports of South Korea's healthcare industry may reach a record high at the end of the year, posting about $20 billion if this trend continues," the KHIDI said. (Yonhap)