Strong Semiconductor Exports in March... Expecting SSD Export Turnaround

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] Semiconductor exports continue to show strong performance, with exports reaching $9.5 billion in March this year, marking the highest level in 2 years and 4 months. By product category, MCP semiconductors used in smartphones and tablet devices have maintained steady growth, and PC SSD exports are also expected to turn around starting in March.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Hana Financial Investment on the 3rd, Korea's semiconductor exports in March reached $9.5 billion, an 8.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Among them, system semiconductor exports increased by 9.3% year-on-year to $2.9 billion.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy stated that as data center companies began accumulating inventory of server memory, the prolonged global supply shortage caused price increase pressure, and the favorable foundry market conditions contributed positively to semiconductor exports.

By product category, MCP (Multi-Chip Package) exports used in smartphones and tablet PCs increased by 26% year-on-year to $2.54 billion. MCP exports have maintained an increasing trend for nine consecutive months since June last year.

Kim Kyung-min, a researcher at Hana Financial Investment, explained, "In particular, semiconductor exports from Korea to India increased by 47.8% year-on-year in March, influenced by the rise in smartphone sales and the increased demand for mobile semiconductors." He added, "Micron, which recently announced its quarterly earnings, also mentioned record-high sales in MCP products, indicating that mobile demand in the upstream industry is generally robust."

Korean SSD Export Amount Trend / Source=Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Hana Financial Investment

Among export items classified as computers, SSD storage devices recorded exports of $910 million in March, a 7.5% increase compared to the previous year. Although SSD exports showed negative growth in February, they rebounded again in March.

Researcher Kim interpreted, "Since SSD exports performed very well in the first half of last year, there is a burden of a possible low base effect this year," adding, "Nevertheless, based on the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's announcement and Micron's earnings report, a turnaround is expected."

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