Shipping containers are seen at Pyeongtaek port in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, April 15, 2025. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea's exports unexpectedly rose in October on robust demand for chips and ships, even as businesses remained cautious amid a global outlook clouded by U.S. tariff policies, data showed on Saturday.

Exports from Asia's fourth-largest economy, an early bellwether for global trade, climbed 3.6% from a year earlier to $59.57 billion in October, compared with a forecast for a 0.2% decline in a Reuters poll of economists.

Exports of semiconductors jumped 25.4% from a year earlier, logging an even faster increase after expanding 22.1% in September, thanks to "strong demand for high-capacity, high-value-added memory chips such as server-focused HBM and DDR5 which led to price increases," South Korea's trade ministry said in a statement.

Ship sales also surged 131.2%, while sales of petrochemical goods gained 12.7% year on year.

Analysts see exports gradually improving as uncertainties in the trade environment have diminished after Washington and Seoul finalised a trade deal this week that brought auto and auto parts tariffs back to 15%.

U.S. President Donald Trump's face-to-face talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in the South Korean city of Busan on Thursday led to an agreement to trim tariffs on China, easing uncertainties in Seoul's two biggest trading partners.

"Exports are expected to remain robust in the fourth quarter, driven by factors such as a surge in semiconductor prices," said Park Sang-hyun, an economist at iM Securities in Seoul.

"Considering the robust semiconductor exports and average daily exports, export conditions remain robust."

Imports declined 1.5% in October to $53.52 billion.

The monthly trade balance stood at a surplus of $6.06 billion, down from $9.53 billion in September.

(Reporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Muralikumar Anantharaman)