South Korea’s exports started the year on a soft note, as the extended Lunar New Year holiday and fewer working days in January snapped a 15-month streak of gains. Exports from Asia’s fourth-largest economy fell 10.

South Korea's exports are expected to have fallen for the first time in 16 months on U.S. tariff uncertainty and a slower tech sector, a Reuters poll showed, underscoring risks for trade-reliant economies from the Trump administration's policies.

South Korea’s exports maintained growth momentum in January, keeping optimism alive at the start of a year overshadowed by domestic political turmoil and Donald Trump’s tariff threat.