The volume of container cargo processed at South Korea's seaports rose 7.2 percent in July from a year earlier, data showed Sunday, as trade increased amid the global economic recovery.

Container cargo processed at the seaports reached 2.58 million twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEUs) last month, compared with 2.4 million TEUs the previous year, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.

The ministry attributed the increase to an accelerating global economic recovery from the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Processed export-import container cargo increased 4.7 percent on-year to 1.46 million TEUs in July. Export cargo inched up 1.5 percent to 740,000 TEUs, and imports gained 8.2 percent to 720,000 TEUs.

South Korea's exports remained robust on the back of strong demand for chips and autos.

Outbound shipments, which account for half of the country's economy, jumped 29.6 percent on-year to a record high of $55.4 billion in July, extending their gains to the ninth straight month. (Yonhap)