The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on May 1 said in a report on exports and imports in April that export volume increased 41.1% from the same month last year to USD 51.19 billion. The photo shows Gamman Container Terminal at the Port of Busan. (Yonhap News)

Export volume last month saw its biggest increase in ten years, and the cumulative figure from January to April this year also set a record high.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on May 1 said in a report on last month's exports and imports that export volume shot up 41.1% from the same month last year to USD 51.19 billion.

This marked the second straight month of USD 50 billion in exports, with last month's performance setting a record high for April.

The 41.1% surge matched the country's highest set in January 2011, and marked six consecutive months of export increase for the first time in three years and one month.

The export volume from January to April was a record-high USD 197.7 billion for the period.

All top 15 export items -- semiconductors, general machinery, cars, petrochemicals, petroleum goods, steel, shipbuilding, wireless communication devices, automotive components, textiles, displays, bio-health, secondary batteries, electronics and computers -- showed positive growth. All but computers and bio-health showed double-digit growth.

By region, exports to China rose 31.7%, those to the U.S. and the European Union 43% each, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations 45.5%. Overseas shipments to Japan saw a return to positive growth for the first time in four months and those to the Middle East the first time in 13 months.

By export item, semiconductors rose 30.2% for their tenth straight month of rise. Cars saw high growth of 73.4%.

In imports, overall volume increased 33.9% to USD 50.8 billion for a trade surplus of USD 390 million, marking the 12th consecutive month of finishing in the black.

Combined trade volume, or the sum of exports and imports, was USD 102 billion. The figure thus hit USD 100 billion for a record second straight month and the third time in history.

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Sung Yun-mo said, "The export rebound from minus 26% growth in April last year to plus 40% in a year was thanks to the growth of new items like bio-health and secondary batteries, with major sectors such as semiconductors and cars playing a supporting role."

"The balanced growth of every item shows how our fundamental foundation in exports has grown stronger."

etoilejr@korea.kr