K-Pop Album Exports Reach All-Time High in First Half of Year... US Surpasses China to Take 2nd Place

Customs Service Export-Import Trade Statistics
Record Highest Export Value in First Half of the Year
United States Surpasses China as Second Largest Export Destination

K-pop album export revenue in the first half of this year reached an all-time high.

Stray Kids, who held a fan meeting last July (Photo by JYP)

According to trade statistics from the Korea Customs Service on the 18th, album export revenue from January to June amounted to $13.293 million (approximately 167.5 billion KRW), a 17.1% increase compared to the same period last year. This is the highest figure ever recorded for the first half of a year.

In terms of export destination rankings, Japan ranked first with $48.52 million, followed by the United States ($25.51 million) and China ($22.64 million). Notably, the United States, which had been consistently third, surpassed China. Since 2012, except for the year 2010, China has held the firm second place in annual export revenue. Germany, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Canada, the United Kingdom, and France rounded out the 'Top 10.'

The rise of the United States to second place among export destinations is attributed to the growing popularity of K-pop in North America. Two K-pop artists have reached number one on Billboard's main album chart, the 'Billboard 200': Stray Kids and Tomorrow X Together. Expanding the scope to the 'Top 5' on the Billboard 200 increases the number of groups to eight. On the other hand, K-pop's influence in China, which has not escaped the effects of the 'Hanhanryeong' (Korean Wave ban), shows relative limitations.

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