South Korea experienced a 14.9% year-on-year increase in exports, reaching USD 36.36 billion during the first 20 days of the month, according to data released on Wednesday by the Korea Customs Service. This growth was largely fueled by a significant demand for semiconductors, the leading export product of the nation, which saw a remarkable 70.2% year-on-year jump to USD 10.73 billion. Semiconductors made up 29.5% of the total exports in this period, an increase of 9.6 percentage points compared to the same timeframe the previous year. Furthermore, export expansion was observed in petroleum products, which grew by 17.6%, and in steel exports, which rose by 1.2%.
When considering trading partners, exports to China, South Korea's largest trading partner, increased significantly by 30.2% to reach USD 8.45 billion. Exports to the United States also saw a rise of 19.3%, totaling USD 6.66 billion, despite the introduction of new tariffs by the US. In December 2025, exports jumped 13.4% year-on-year to USD 69.58 billion, marking the most rapid increase since July 2024. For the year 2025, exports totaled a record-breaking USD 709.7 billion, surpassing the USD 700 billion threshold for the first time.