National tax revenue reached 223 trillion won in the January-June period, up 17.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Friday.
The collection pace reached 53.7 percent of this year's supplementary budget target of 415.4 trillion won and is the second-highest first-half collection ratio in the past five years.
The bumper tax haul was driven primarily by a surge in securities transaction taxes, income taxes and corporate taxes as the AI-fueled rally in semiconductor and technology shares spilled over into the broader economy.
Securities transaction tax revenue more than quadrupled to 6.8 trillion won, an increase of 5.2 trillion won, or 338.7 percent, from a year earlier. Listed share trading value ballooned to 1,911 trillion won in May, nearly five times the 390 trillion won recorded a year earlier, while the restoration of the securities transaction tax rate further boosted receipts.
The related rural development tax also climbed 175.1 percent to 10.1 trillion won, reflecting the sharp rise in KOSPI trading volumes.
Income tax receipts increased 10.4 trillion won, or 15.9 percent, to 75.7 trillion won, supported by larger performance bonuses, higher payrolls and increased capital gains taxes as housing transactions recovered.
Corporate tax revenue rose 9.6 percent to 49.3 trillion won on improving corporate earnings, while value-added tax collections increased 12.2 percent to 44.8 trillion won, helped by stronger imports and lower tax refunds. Customs duties also rose 5 percent from a year earlier as import values expanded.
The ministry said the first-half figures have yet to reflect the record profits now being generated by South Korea's semiconductor industry.
"Semiconductor-related operating profits and the performance bonuses associated with them have not yet been reflected in tax revenue," a ministry official said. "They will begin to be incorporated through August's interim corporate tax payments."
That suggests the government's tax windfall could grow further in the second half as Samsung Electronics and SK hynix book combined second-quarter operating profits of around 150 trillion won, equivalent to roughly 6 percent of South Korea's annual nominal GDP.
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