Early July exports showed an increase compared to the same period last year. This is due to the continued strong performance of semiconductor exports following last month. Exports to the United States increased by more than 6% as the reciprocal tariff on the U.S. was postponed until August 1.
The Korea Customs Service announced on the 11th that exports from the 1st to the 10th of this month totaled $15.5 billion, marking a 9.5% increase compared to the same period last year. The number of working days during the same period last year was the same at 8.5 days.
Imports during the 1st to the 10th were $20 billion, an increase of 1.8%, resulting in a trade deficit of $600 million.
By item, semiconductor exports increased by 12.8% compared to the same period last year, driving overall export growth. The share of semiconductor exports rose by 0.6 percentage points to 19.7% compared to the same period last year.
Exports of automobiles, which were expected to decrease due to tariff increases, also rose by 13.3% compared to the same period last year. Ship exports increased by 134.9%. In contrast, exports of petroleum products decreased by 1.9%, and wireless communication devices dropped by 13.7% compared to the same period last year.
Exports to major countries generally showed an upward trend. Exports to China increased by 6.2% compared to the same period last year, while those to the United States and the European Union (EU) rose by 6.1% and 3.6%, respectively. The share of these top three countries in total exports reached 47.0%.
Exports to countries such as Taiwan (38.3%), Japan (9.2%), India (2.7%), Singapore (6.6%), and Malaysia (7.9%) also increased. In contrast, exports to Hong Kong decreased by 43.1%.