Seoul: South Korea's exports rose by 8.4 percent year-on-year in November, reaching over US$61 billion, continuing a six-month streak of increases driven by robust demand for semiconductors, as reported by government data on Monday. Outbound shipments totaled $61.04 billion, marking this as the highest figure for any November on record, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources.
According to Yonhap News Agency, imports increased by 1.2 percent from the previous year to $51.3 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $9.73 billion. The cumulative exports from January to November hit a record high of $640.2 billion, fueling optimism that the annual exports will exceed the $700 billion mark for the first time in history this year. Semiconductor exports saw a significant rise of 38.6 percent year-on-year to an all-time monthly high of $17.26 billion, driven by a continuous increase in memory chip prices due to strong demand for high-value products in data centers. This marked the ninth consecutive month of on-year growth in chip exports.
Auto exports rebounded by 13.7 percent to $6.41 billion, owing to the strong performance of internal combustion and hybrid vehicles, reversing a 10.5 percent decline seen in October. For the January-November period, the accumulated exports of semiconductors and automobiles reached their highest figures, totaling $152.6 billion and $66.04 billion, respectively. Shipments of wireless communication devices grew by 1.6 percent to $1.73 billion, and exports of secondary batteries increased by 2.2 percent to $670 million, breaking a six-month losing streak.
Exports of electrical equipment, agro-fisheries products, and cosmetics rose by 5.2 percent, 3.3 percent, and 4.3 percent respectively, amounting to $1.27 billion, $1.04 billion, and $950 million. However, petroleum product exports fell by 10.3 percent to $3.28 billion, and petrochemical product exports dropped by 14.1 percent to $3.06 billion due to a global oversupply. Steel exports decreased by 16 percent to $2.3 billion as new orders were limited by the U.S. administration's high tariff measures and a slowdown in global demand.
Regionally, exports to the United States slightly declined by 0.2 percent year-on-year to $10.35 billion in November. Semiconductor and auto exports to the U.S. increased by 39 percent and 11 percent to $1.1 billion and $2.2 billion, respectively, in the first 25 days of the month. However, steel product shipments to the U.S. fell by 24 percent year-on-year to $200 million, while machinery exports contracted by 18 percent to $800 million. Exports to China increased by 6.9 percent to $12.07 billion due to strong demand for semiconductors, petroleum, and machinery products. Shipments to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) rose by 6.3 percent to $10.42 billion, led by semiconductors, and shipments to the Middle East surged by 33.1 percent to $2.18 billion. Meanwhile, shipments to the European Union decreased by 1.9 percent to $5.34 billion due to weaker steel and ship demand.
Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan stated that Korea's exports are on an upward trajectory, thanks to the strong performance of semiconductor, automobile, and bio-health products, as well as the diversification of export items. He pledged efforts to sustain the growth momentum despite global trade uncertainties. With the recent introduction of a special bill concerning Seoul's $350 billion investment commitment to the U.S. under a bilateral tariff agreement, conditions have been set for the U.S. administration to lower tariffs on Korean cars and auto parts, he added.