A single industry now accounts for nearly half of the country’s overseas sales, turning the global AI race into an economic windfall.
South Korea’s exports since the beginning of 2026 have reached $709.4 billion, surpassing the previous annual record. The main driver of growth has been global demand for chips used in artificial intelligence systems.
As informed by Reuters
In all of 2025, the country exported $709.3 billion worth of goods. This was the second consecutive annual record.
South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy, could reach $1 trillion in annual exports as early as the beginning of December. If so, it would become the fourth country after the United States, China, and Germany to surpass this threshold.
Our exports continue to demonstrate exceptionally strong growth, despite the uncertain trade environment caused by rising protectionism, the restructuring of global supply chains, and the situation in the Middle East.
– South Korea Customs Service
Chips accounted for 41% of South Korea’s exports
From January through August 2026, semiconductor exports increased by 169.6% compared with the same period last year, reaching $281 billion. As a result, chips accounted for 41% of the country’s total exports.
South Korea is home to the world’s leading memory chip manufacturers, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. They are benefiting from a sharp rise in product prices amid a boom in artificial intelligence investment and a chip shortage.
At the same time, passenger car shipments, which rank second among the country’s main export goods, fell by 4% year on year during the first eight months of the year.
Exports to China, South Korea’s largest trading partner, rose by 76% during this period. Shipments to the United States increased by 57%.
Strong semiconductor sales are enabling South Korea to aim for a new all-time export high and bringing it closer to the symbolic $1 trillion mark for the year as a whole.