South Korea Moves Closer to Becoming Fourth Country With $1 Trillion in Annual Exports

South Korea’s semiconductor exports reached a monthly record of $46.65 billion in August, helping lift total shipments close to the $100 billion mark and strengthening the possibility of an annual export total above $1 trillion.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said August exports rose 68.7% from a year earlier to $98.25 billion. That ranked third among all monthly totals, behind $102 billion in June and $99 billion in July. Exports during the first eight months of the year reached $693.3 billion.

Semiconductor shipments more than tripled from August last year, when they totaled $15.1 billion. The ministry attributed the increase to rising memory prices and continued demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure, supported by capital spending from hyperscalers such as Google and Amazon. The average fixed price of DDR4 8Gb DRAM rose to about $25 last month, from $5.30 in the third quarter of last year.

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The strength of semiconductor exports continues, while exports of products other than semiconductors also recorded a high growth rate of 20%, showing that the base of our exports is expanding.

Exports increased in seven of the nine major regional markets. Shipments to China rose 119% to $24.1 billion, while exports to ASEAN increased 75% to $19.1 billion and those to the United States climbed 89% to $16.5 billion. Exports to the European Union, Latin America, Japan and India also grew. Middle East shipments fell 15% as renewed geopolitical risks contributed to a sharp decline in automobile exports.

August imports rose 22.5% to $63.51 billion, leaving a trade surplus of $34.75 billion. The surplus exceeded $30 billion for a third consecutive month. Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan said exports outside semiconductors also grew 20%, while warning that U.S. tariff policy, stronger protectionism, supply-chain changes and conditions in the Middle East could affect South Korean companies.

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We will closely monitor how changes in the trade environment, including U.S. tariff policy, stronger protectionism in major countries, the restructuring of global supply chains and the situation in the Middle East, affect our companies’ exports.