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Despite global trade uncertainties, including the fallout from US tariff measures and conflicts in the Middle East, South Korean exports have set yet another historic milestone. Last month, the nation’s exports surpassed $100 billion for the first time in history, marking an all-time monthly high. Driven by an unprecedented boom in the semiconductor sector, South Korea has become the fourth country in the world to clear the $100 billion monthly export threshold.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced these June import and export trends on the 1st. Last month, South Korea's exports surged 70.9% year-on-year to reach $102.25 billion.

This shattered the previous monthly export record of $87.75 billion set just a month earlier in May. Factoring in the number of working days, the average daily export value also hit an all-time high of $4.54 billion.

By eclipsing the $100 billion monthly mark, South Korea joins Germany, China, and the United States as the only four nations to achieve this feat.

Concurrently, imports grew by 30.1% to $66.1 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of $36.15 billion—breaching the $30 billion milestone for the first time.

Once again, semiconductors spearheaded this massive export expansion. Last month, chip shipments skyrocketed 199.5% year-on-year to $44.82 billion, rewriting history by clearing the $40 billion threshold for any single month. A massive spike in demand for memory chips such as HBM and DDR5—fueled by aggressive AI server investments from American and Chinese big tech firms—drove up memory prices and propelled overall export growth.

In fact, the fixed contract price for DDR5 16Gb memory climbed to $40 in June, while NAND flash (128Gb) prices rose to $28.8, maintaining a steep upward trajectory compared to last year.

Beyond semiconductors, computer exports jumped 308.8% to $5.41 billion on the back of robust SSD demand, and wireless communication device shipments rose 51.9% thanks to strong sales of new models.

Automobile exports ticked up 5.8% to $6.71 billion due to stable parts supply and ramped-up production. Shipments of vessels expanded 12.9% owing to accelerated deliveries of high-value ships like LNG carriers, while cosmetics, biohealth, and agricultural and fisheries products posted their best June performances on record to support the upward momentum.

By destination, exports to both China and the United States simultaneously breached the $20 billion mark. Outbound shipments to China, led primarily by semiconductors, spiked 92.1% to $20.03 billion. Similarly, exports to the US surged 78.6% to $20.02 billion, propelled by expanding AI server infrastructure investments and solid demand for consumer goods. Exports to ASEAN and the European Union also achieved record highs for the month of June.

With these figures, first-half exports rewrote the record books as well. Total cumulative exports from January to June reached $496.7 billion, up 48.4% year-on-year, logging the highest first-half performance ever. The cumulative trade surplus stood at $138.3 billion, marking an improvement of $110.9 billion compared to the previous year.

Notably, semiconductor exports in the first half alone reached $192.4 billion, already outpacing last year's total annual record of $173.4 billion. Computer shipments also set a new annual milestone during the first six months, reaching $21.2 billion.

"The first half of this year was an incredibly demanding period for exporters, characterized by ongoing US tariffs, logistical and energy instabilities arising from the war in the Middle East, and heightening external uncertainties due to the spread of protectionism," Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan stated. "Nevertheless, thanks to the chip boom fed by expanding investments in AI servers, steady performances across our traditional flagship items like vessels, petroleum products, and wireless devices, and the even growth of promising consumer goods like cosmetics and agrifood products, our exports successfully achieved an all-time high for the first half of the year."

                                                                                                           Kim Jeong-kyu