South Korea's outbound shipment growth has decelerated for the fourth straight year as the global economic slump cut demand and weak oil prices lowered the export prices of key products, data showed Sunday.

According to the data compiled by the Korea Investment Trade Association, the country's exports increased 4.4 percent last year in terms of volume, well higher than the global average expansion of 3.1 percent.

But the 2014 figure compares with a 4.8 percent gain in 2013 and a 5.6 percent rise in 2012. The reading also marks a sharp slowdown from a 13.9 percent expansion in 2011 and a jaw-dropping 22 percent growth in 2010.

The country has also seen its export prices decline for the third consecutive year, posting a 2.2 percent fall, a 1.9 percent drop and 3.7 percent slide, respectively, in 2014, 2013 and 2012, the data showed.

The deceleration in exports came as the global economy still remained weak despite a series of aggressive easing policies by major and emerging countries.

By product, outbound shipments of petrochemicals, LDC and telecommunication equipment were hit hard by the protracted global economic slump and increased competition from Chinese firms.

The data showed that Asia's fourth-largest economy suffered a 2.8 percent fall in its exports in the first quarter of the year from a year earlier to reach US$133.6 billion, and its imports also sank 15.3 percent on-year to reach $112.2 billion in the January-March period.

Separate data compiled by the Bank of Korea also showed that the contribution of exports to South Korea's economic growth fell to a five-year low last year as outbound shipments were hurt by a slower-than-expected global recovery.

Of South Korea's 3.3 percent economic growth last year, 1.5 percentage points resulted from overseas shipments of goods and services.

This translates into a contribution rate of 45.5 percent, the lowest since 2009, when numbers reached minus 28.6 percent as the global economy was stung by a financial crisis. A negative reading means exports actually brought down overall growth. (Yonhap)