Despite COVID-19, SME Exports Reach $117.1 Billion... Record High Ever

Ministry of SMEs and Startups Announces '2021 SME Export Performance'
Strong Results in Synthetic Resins, Pharmaceuticals, Semiconductors
Top Export to the US... Rapid Growth in Online Exports

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] Despite the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, last year, exports by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) surpassed the $110 billion mark for the first time ever, reaching a new record of $117.1 billion.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced the 2021 export performance of SMEs and export support plans on the 20th. Last year, SME exports amounted to $117.1 billion, a 16.2% increase compared to the previous year. This is the first time since statistics began in 2010 that the export growth rate exceeded 10%.

The monthly export value first exceeded $10 billion in December 2020, and this year it surpassed $10 billion six times.

By company, 2,294 companies achieved $10 million in exports, marking an all-time high. Companies achieving $50 million and $100 million in exports numbered 250 and 66 respectively, both record highs.

The main products driving last year’s export record were synthetic resins, pharmaceuticals, and semiconductors, each increasing by more than $1 billion compared to the previous year.

The largest export destination was China, which maintained growth mainly in semiconductor equipment and synthetic resins, recording the second-highest export amount ever to China. The United States led growth in plastic products and cosmetics, achieving the highest export amount ever to the U.S.

Online exports by SMEs grew by 91.7% year-on-year to $670 million. The number of online export companies also grew significantly by 92.7% to 3,148. Thanks to the popularity of K-Culture, cosmetics, clothing, and audio devices showed strong performance.

Venture companies recorded exports of $22.8 billion, accounting for 19.5% of SME exports. Notably, pharmaceuticals, ranked sixth among SME export items, ranked first within venture companies.

Startup exports reached $22.3 billion, accounting for 19.1% of SME exports.

Exports by small business owners amounted to $11.1 billion, with a growth rate of 19.2%, higher than the overall SME growth rate of 16.2%, showing significant growth.

Exporting SMEs created a total of 43,770 jobs over the past year. The employment growth rate was 4.1%, with an average of 0.9 jobs created per company.

The employment growth rate was higher for companies with larger export volumes. Companies with exports under $1 million had an employment growth rate of 3.2%, while those with exports over $10 million had a rate of 7.5%.

Kang Sung-cheon, Vice Minister of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, stated, "Despite difficult domestic and international conditions, exporting SMEs and ventures have achieved record-breaking performance over the past 10 years. We will actively strive to ensure that exporting SMEs can sustain their growth momentum this year."

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