South Korea posted its first-ever trade surplus in the cosmetics sector this year, thanks mainly to a rise in exports to China, a traders association said Tuesday.

In the first eight months of 2014, the country’s trade surplus in cosmetics stood at $147.66 million, the Korea International Trade Association said. The country sold more makeup products abroad than it imported from March to August, it said.

From January through August, cosmetics exports to China, the No. 1 export market for South Korean cosmetics, reached $290.88 million. This represents a 69.9 percent surge compared to the year before. Exports to Hong Kong, the second-largest overseas market, also rose 69.3 percent to over $210 million.

In contrast, South Korea’s trade balance in the cosmetics sector was in the red by $65.68 million for the whole of last year.

KITA said the favorable trade balance for this year stems largely from a surge in demand from China, and in particular younger Chinese consumers who view South Korean-made cosmetics as reasonably priced and of high quality. (Yonhap)