Record High Export in First Half of the Year... Surpassing $300 Billion for the First Time (Comprehensive)

Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Announces Export and Import Performance for the First Half of This Year

All 15 Major Export Items Showed Favorable Performance
14 Major Items Recorded Double-Digit Growth Rates

(Photo) [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] Export value in the first half of this year surpassed $300 billion for the first time ever, marking a record high. This is interpreted as a result of the remarkable progress of new export industries such as system semiconductors, biohealth, and secondary batteries amid a clear recovery in the global economy and trade.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 1st that exports from January to June this year reached $303.24 billion, an increase of 26.1% compared to the same period last year. This surpassed the previous record of $296.7 billion in the first half of 2018. The export growth rate (26.1%) was the highest in 11 years.

Minister Moon Seung-wook of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "While traditional key industries are solidifying their positions in the global market, the proportion of future high value-added products such as system semiconductors, eco-friendly vehicles, OLED, and high value-added ships is continuously expanding," adding, "It is encouraging that all new growth items including biohealth, secondary batteries, agricultural and marine food products, and cosmetics achieved record-high export values in the first half."

Exports of all 15 major items increased in the first half of this year, with 14 of them showing double-digit growth rates. The increase in exports of all 15 major items in the first half has occurred only three times, including this year, in 1991 and 2004. Among the nine major export regions, exports increased to eight markets except the Middle East.

In particular, exports in June this year also recorded $54.8 billion, up 39.7% compared to the same period last year. The upward trend that began in November last year continued for eight consecutive months. Especially, the growth rate in the last three months hovered around 40%. Last month's export value was the highest ever for June, and ranked third highest when compared to all months, following September 2017 ($55.1 billion) and October 2018 ($54.9 billion). For the first time in 10 years since January 2011, exports of all 15 major items and to all nine major regions increased.

Semiconductors surpassed $10 billion for two consecutive months, setting a new record for June exports based on steady memory demand. General machinery and petrochemicals, the second and third largest export items, also achieved their highest export values for June amid the global economic recovery. This means that Korea's top three export items all recorded their highest export performance for June. Demand for automobiles and auto parts recovered to pre-COVID-19 levels, with exports increasing by over 50% and 100%, respectively. In particular, automobiles showed double-digit growth for six consecutive months. New industries such as secondary batteries and biohealth also set record-high export values for June.

Minister Moon said, "Threats such as logistics difficulties in import and export, parts supply disruptions, and rising raw material prices continue," adding, "The public and private sectors will work together to minimize risks and do their best to help exports achieve record highs this year through support such as financing and marketing for export companies."

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