S. Korea's ICT exports hit record high in 2014: report

South Korea's exports in information and communication technology (ICT) products hit a new record high in 2014 due to strong demand for locally-made chips and mobile phones, a government report showed on Thursday.

The ICT exports rose 2.6 percent from a year earlier to 173.88 billion U.S. dollars in 2014, topping the 170 billion-U.S. dollar level for the first time in the country's history, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The sector's exports accounted for about one third of exports for the overall industry, contributing largely to the growth of the export-driven economy.

Exports in semiconductors and mobile phones expanded in 2014, while those for display panels and digital TVs reduced.

Chip exports advanced 9.6 percent from a year earlier to 62.65 billion dollars in 2014 on demand for chips used in mobile devices.

Mobile phone exports jumped 12.6 percent in the first half of 2014, but those for the whole year rose 6.3 percent to 26.44 billion dollars as Chinese manufacturers, such as Xiaomi, posted brisk sales of smartphones in the second half.

Exports in display panels and digital TVs declined 3.2 percent and 8.7 percent each due to globally weak demand and brisk sales of Chinese products.

The ICT exports to China and the United States, South Korea's top two trading partners, gained 3.6 percent and 3.8 percent, respectively, but those to Japan and the European Union nations slid 11.3 percent and 1.7 percent. Endi