South Korea's trade surplus in the industrial parts and materials sector rose to a new high in the first nine months of this year as the growth of its exports outpaced that of imports, the government said Tuesday.

In the January-September period, the country's exports of industrial parts and materials came to some US$196 billion, up 3.7 percent from the same period last year, and its imports rose 1.4 percent on-year to reach some $123 billion, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The country's trade surplus in the sector jumped 7.8 percent on-year to a record $72.8 billion during the cited period, it said.

Electronic parts and machinery parts led the overall exports growth, according to the ministry.

The country continued to post a large deficit in trade with Japan in the first half, but the deficit shrank significantly from a year earlier as its dependence on Japanese products dipped to a record low of 21 percent out of its total imports, it said.

The comparable figures were 27.1 percent, 25.2 percent and 23 percent, respectively, in 2005, 2010 and 2012, according to the ministry.

South Korea posted a surplus in trade with all the other countries, including China, the world's largest importer of South Korean products, it added.

The ministry said the country's exports of industrial parts and materials will likely continue increasing during the remainder of the year, partly on growing demands in China. (Yonhap News)