SEOUL – South Korea’s exports maintained strong growth in early October as booming global demand for artificial intelligence fuelled semiconductor shipments, underscoring the economy’s resilience on the eve of the central bank’s interest-rate decision.
Exports adjusted for working-day differences rose 65.9% from a year earlier in the first 20 days of October, according to customs office data released on Oct 21. That compared with an 89.8% increase during the same period in September.
On an unadjusted basis, shipments gained 105.4%, while imports rose 42.8%, resulting in a trade surplus of US$14.5 billion (S$18.5 billion). Exports totalled US$61.6 billion in the first 20 days of October, extending momentum after shipments reached US$71.4 billion during the same period in September.
Year-on-year comparisons have been distorted by the timing of the Chuseok holidays, which fell in September 2026 and October 2025, making the working-day-adjusted figures a better gauge of the underlying trend.
Semiconductors remained the main engine of growth, with chip exports surging 222.5% from a year earlier to US$27.5 billion. Shipments of petroleum products increased 68.3%, while automobile exports gained almost 41%.
The figures reinforce a picture of an economy powered by a booming semiconductor sector that is also keeping inflation elevated.
The data will also provide the Bank of Korea (BOK) a key economic input ahead of the Oct 22 rate decision, where it is widely expected to keep policy unchanged as it weighs the impact of its recent rate hikes.
The BOK raised its benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point to 3% in August, its second straight hike, as stronger-than-expected growth and sticky inflation prompted policymakers to act preemptively. Governor Shin Hyun Song said the bank will keep a restrictive stance until it is confident inflation will converge to its 2% target.
Headline inflation eased to 2.9% in September from 3.1% a month earlier but remains well above the central bank’s target.
Shin has said the Middle East war and the AI boom are both adding to inflationary pressure. Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was 2.8% in September.
The strength of the chip cycle has boosted corporate earnings and investment, though policymakers are still assessing how widely those gains are spreading to household consumption and the broader domestic economy.
By destination, exports to China climbed 154.4%, while shipments to the US gained 154.9%. Exports to Malaysia and Singapore rose 363.2% and 121.1%, respectively. BloomberG
