[Q&A] "Export Growth Continues... We Will Do Our Best for a Clear Positive Rebound"

January Export and Import Trends Briefing

Total exports $48.01 billion... up 11.4% from last year
Imports $44.05 billion up 3.1%

‘Semiconductors, wireless communication devices, displays, home appliances, computers, secondary batteries’ show double-digit growth for 5 consecutive months
Petrochemicals and steel also rebound positively

(Photo) [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Ju Sang-don] Na Seung-sik, Director of the Trade and Investment Office at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated on the 1st, "(The export growth trend) has continued since the second half of last year, and this year we will do our best to firmly pursue a positive strategy."

Director Na said this during the January export-import trend briefing. He said, "In December last year, when announcing the 2021 economic management direction, we projected export growth at 8.6%, and since the lowest point, Korean exports have steadily recovered from the second half of the year," adding, "We will do our best to overcome protectionism, the US-China conflict, and the resurgence of COVID-19 to continue the recovery trend."

Regarding January export performance this year, he diagnosed that it was due to the strong performance of new growth items including bio and health, along with growth in existing major export items. Director Na explained, "Basically, IT items including semiconductors performed very well, and new growth items including bio and health newly joined the growth trend," adding, "Automobiles showed remarkable growth especially in the US and European Union (EU), and the preference for cars over public transportation due to COVID-19 also had some influence."

According to the January export-import trends announced by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy that day, the average daily export amount considering working days was $2.13 billion, up 6.4% compared to the same period last year. This surpassed the previous January record of $2.07 billion set in 2014.

Total exports also rose 11.4% year-on-year to $48.01 billion. This marks the third consecutive month of increase following 4.1% in November and 12.6% in December last year. It is the first time since January-March 2018 that both total exports and average daily exports have increased for three consecutive months.

Semiconductor exports increased by 21.7%, marking five consecutive months of double-digit growth. Wireless communication devices (58.0%) and displays (32.2%) showed their highest growth rates in about 16 years and 10 years respectively. Automobiles (40.2%) recorded the highest growth rate since September 2017, and bio-health (66.5%) marked 17 consecutive months of growth. Petrochemicals (8.6%) rebounded positively after 26 months, and steel (6.0%) after 4 months. On the other hand, general machinery and textiles, which had increased in December last year, recorded -4.8% and -7.9% respectively in January, and petroleum products (-46.0%) continued to decline due to low oil prices.

By country, the three major markets?China (22.0%), the United States (46.1%), and the European Union (EU, 23.9%)?all increased by more than 20%. In particular, exports to the US in January reached $8.39 billion, marking the highest monthly export record.

January imports rose 3.1% to $44.05 billion. Accordingly, the trade balance recorded a surplus of $3.96 billion for nine consecutive months.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.