South Korea experienced a remarkable surge in its outbound shipments, with exports rocketing 60.4 percent year-on-year in the first 20 days of June. This unprecedented growth, primarily fueled by robust semiconductor exports, marks a new record high for the period, according to data released Monday.
During the June 1-20 period, total outbound shipments reached an impressive $62 billion, a significant increase from the $38.6 billion recorded during the same timeframe last year. This strong performance, detailed by the Korea Customs Service, underscores the nation’s robust economic activity.
This monumental $62 billion figure represents the highest 20-day export total on record for South Korea, comfortably surpassing the previous peak of $54.3 billion achieved in March of this year.
Concurrently, imports also saw a substantial rise, climbing 23.2 percent year-on-year to $44.5 billion during the same period. This dynamic trade environment led to a significant trade surplus of $17 billion, reflecting a healthy balance for the South Korean economy.
A key driver of this export boom was the semiconductor sector. Exports of chips nearly tripled, reaching $25.5 billion, primarily due to soaring global demand for advanced memory components, significantly fueled by the burgeoning artificial intelligence (AI) industry.
Semiconductors alone constituted an impressive 41.2 percent of South Korea’s total exports, marking a substantial 18.3 percentage point increase from their share a year prior.
Beyond chips, other major export categories also contributed positively. Automobile exports rose 2.3 percent to $3.73 billion, while petroleum product shipments surged by 39 percent to $3.67 billion, demonstrating diversified strength in South Korea’s export portfolio.
Conversely, outbound shipments of auto parts experienced a slight contraction, falling 9.5 percent to $1.1 billion.
Geographically, South Korea’s export growth was broad-based. Exports to China saw a massive 86.9 percent increase, reaching $13 billion, while shipments to the United States also soared by 53.9 percent, totaling $11.4 billion.
Significant growth was also observed in key markets such as Vietnam, with shipments rising 75.5 percent, and the European Union, which saw a solid 13.6 percent increase.
