South Korean exports of oil products rose moderately in the first nine months of this year thanks to their sharp competitive edge in the international oil product market, a trade association said Sunday.

According to the Korea Petroleum Association (KPA), outbound shipments of oil products came to $41.5 billion in the January-September period, up 7.7 percent from the same period last year.

The association expects exports of oil products to top $55 billion for the whole of 2012, outpacing a record high of $51.6 billion last year, if the current trend keeps up.

In September alone, exports of oil products surged 24 percent on-year to reach $5.26 billion, the association said.

A rise in shipments of oil products to Asia and Europe and high oil prices contributed to the growth in exports of oil products during the period, the association said.

The country’s exports of oil products were on the increase logging $20.4 billion in 2006, $24 billion in 2007 and $37.6

billion in 2008. But the global financial crisis that began in the U.S. drove the country’s oil products exports down to $23 billion in 2009.

In the first nine months of the year, oil products were South Korea’s top export item, surpassing semiconductor exports worth $36.8 billion, $37.2 billion in machinery exports and $35.2 billion in car exports, the association said. (Yonhap News)