As reported widely in the Korean press, Korea's exports surged during the COVID pandemic to date, with the main export being semiconductors. As reported by The Korea Times, in July the nation's exports reached their highest level since 1956. The pattern during the COVID outbreak is shown in the accompanying figure (click for a full-size version). Automobile exports also contributed to this export success, as noted in The Korea Times article. " Overseas chip sales rose 39.6 percent to $11 billion on growing demand from data centers. Automobile exports also rose 26.4 percent year-on-year in July to $4.1 billion, backed by easing automotive chip shortages, as well as higher sales of high-end models, including in sport utility vehicles and electric cars."