Exports likely 13.7 yy in April vs 3.1 in March
U.S. shipments the main driver, China demand provides support
Imports to rise for first time in 14 months on higher oil prices

SEOUL, April 29 Reuters South Korea39;s exports are expected to have risen at a faster pace in April, extending gains for a seventh straight month on strong chip sales, a Reuters poll showed on Monday.

Exports out of Asia39;s fourthlargest economy are forecast to have increased 13.7 in April from a year earlier, a median estimate of 15 economists showed in the survey.

That is sharply up from a 3.1 rise in March, which was the slowest in the current sequence of annual gains that started in October.

South Korea is the first major exporting economy to report monthly trade figures each month, providing an early glimpse into the state of global demand.

Exports are expected to rise by a doubledigit percentage for the first time in three months as chip sales continue to be robust, with exports of home appliances and computers also improving, said Ha Keonhyeong, economist, Shinhan Securities.

In the first 20 days of this month, exports rose 11.1, led by a 43.0 jump in shipments of semiconductors, which have been rising since November.

The South Korean economy grew at the fastest pace in more than two years in the first quarter, data showed last week, beating all estimates on the back of a pickup in domestic consumption and robust exports.

By destination, exports to the United States are set to…