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(SEOUL=Yonhap News) South Korea's defense industry saw its exports more than triple in the past seven years, driven by firm demand for submarines and high-tech weapons, a report said Sunday.

According to the report compiled by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET), the country's defense sector logged 1.9 trillion won (US$1.62 billion) worth of overseas sales last year, 210 percent growth from 2009.

During the cited period, the sector's output jumped 53 percent to 14.5 trillion won with its hiring rising 25 percent to 36,000, the report said.

The country's defense industry saw its global ranking rise to the 10th spot from the 13th place over the period, it said.

As of 2015, the country's defense budget and output both ranked 10th, with its defense-related technology coming in at 9th.

But the report said despite the stellar growth, the local defense industry's exports accounted for a meager 1.2 percent of the global market, with its production making up 2.1 percent of the global figure.


A variety of weapons, including K-9 self-propelled howitzers, are displayed at a trade fair in Goyang, east of Seoul, on Sept. 7, 2016. (Yonhap)

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Source: Yonhap News (Dec. 11, 2016)