Seoul: South Korea's top 10 businesses accounted for more than half of the country's total exports in the first quarter of 2026, data showed Thursday, driven by robust semiconductor shipments.

According to Yonhap News Agency, a report released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics indicated that the leading companies were responsible for 50.1 percent of all outbound shipments in the January-March period, a significant increase from 36.6 percent a year earlier.

South Korea's exports for the first quarter amounted to US$219.9 billion, marking an increase of 37.8 percent from the previous year. Large conglomerates experienced a 52.9 percent rise in their export volume, reaching $158.5 billion. In contrast, medium-sized businesses recorded a 7.4 percent increase in outbound shipments, totaling $31.3 billion.

The findings also revealed that exports by small businesses climbed 10.7 percent to $29.1 billion. By product category, exports of capital goods, including semiconductors, surged 60.9 percent to $144.7 billion. However, consumer goods shipments saw a slight decline of 3.1 percent to $2.7 billion.

Exports of raw materials increased by 13.7 percent from the previous year, reaching $52.5 billion.