South Korea's exports exceeded $110 billion for the second consecutive month in October, driven by strong demand for key products, including semiconductors. The cumulative export figure for the year reached $930 billion, leaving just $700 billion to achieve the historic milestone of $1 trillion in annual exports.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Customs Service, the preliminary export figure for October was $115.28 billion, marking a 93.7% increase compared to the same month last year.
This marks the second-highest monthly export figure on record and the highest for October. The average daily export amount, adjusted for working days, was $5.24 billion, up 76.1% from the previous year, surpassing $5 billion for two consecutive months.
The surge in exports was led by semiconductors, which saw a remarkable increase of 259.4% year-on-year, totaling $56.44 billion. This follows September's record of $60.3 billion, making it the second-highest performance ever. The rise in semiconductor prices and increased export volumes were supported by ongoing investments in artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure by major global tech companies.
Prices for memory semiconductors continued to rise, with the fixed price for DDR5 16Gb increasing from $40 in June to $50 in October. Semiconductors accounted for nearly 49% of total exports.
Computer exports also surged by 496.6% to $5.85 billion, driven by increased investments in server infrastructure and rising demand for SSDs. Wireless communication device exports rose 6.7% to $1.95 billion, marking the twelfth consecutive month of growth.
Automobile exports reached a record high for October at $6.55 billion, an 18.1% increase, influenced by more working days due to the Chuseok holiday and strong hybrid vehicle sales. In contrast, ship exports fell 43.6% to $2.64 billion due to a base effect from last year's marine plant exports.
The rise in international oil prices significantly impacted export prices. Petroleum product exports increased by 80.0% to $6.92 billion, while petrochemicals rose 27.5% to $4 billion, although export volumes for both categories decreased by 7.5% and 6.8%, respectively.
Exports of cosmetics, agricultural and fishery products, and biohealth products also reached record highs for October, increasing by 57.5%, 11.6%, and 30.2%, respectively.
Regionally, exports increased in seven of the nine major markets. Exports to China surged 133.6% to $26.98 billion, while exports to the United States jumped 185.8% to $24.9 billion.
Exports to ASEAN countries rose 128.0% to $21.33 billion, exceeding $20 billion for the second consecutive month. Exports to the European Union increased by 56.4% to $8.1 billion, continuing an eleven-month growth streak.
For the first ten months of the year, cumulative exports reached $930 billion, a 60.6% increase compared to the same period last year. This is the first time cumulative exports have surpassed $900 billion. The government anticipates achieving the $1 trillion annual export target in November, with only $700 billion remaining.
In October, imports rose 36.0% to $72.78 billion, with energy imports increasing by 63.1% to $16.49 billion and non-energy imports rising by 29.7% to $56.29 billion.
With exports significantly outpacing imports, the trade balance recorded a surplus of $42.5 billion in October, an increase of $36.5 billion from the previous year. The cumulative trade surplus for the first ten months stands at $294.9 billion.
Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jeong-kwan stated, "Our exports have maintained a robust growth trend above $110 billion in October, making it highly likely that we will achieve $1 trillion in annual exports in November. This is a result of increased demand in advanced industries like semiconductors, driven by the growth of the AI sector, and the competitiveness demonstrated by our companies despite challenging external conditions."
He added, "The government will focus all policy efforts on strengthening trade cooperation with major countries to minimize uncertainties faced by our companies and actively resolve export challenges, ensuring that small and medium-sized enterprises can also benefit from export growth."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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