South Korea's October exports nearly double to $115.28 billion as chip sales surge 259%

South Korea's exports nearly doubled in October, rising 93.7% from a year earlier to $115.28 billion, preliminary data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources showed on Sunday, November 1. It was the strongest monthly growth since January 1974 and slightly above the 93.2% median rise forecast in a Reuters poll of economists. October was the second consecutive month above $110 billion and the second-highest monthly total on record, behind only September.

Chips account for nearly half of exports

Semiconductors drove the surge: chip exports jumped 259.4% year on year to $56.44 billion, about 49% of the month's total, the second straight month above $50 billion after September's record $60.3 billion. The ministry said prices and volumes stayed high as global technology giants kept investing in facilities to compete for leadership in artificial intelligence. Memory chip prices kept climbing, with the fixed price for DDR5 16Gb rising from $40 in June to $50 in October.

Computer exports surged 496.6% to $5.85 billion on growing server demand for AI services, while automobile exports reached $6.55 billion. Imports rose 36% to $72.78 billion, leaving a trade surplus of $42.5 billion.

Annual exports on course to pass $1 trillion in November

Cumulative exports for January to October reached $930 billion, up 60.6% from a year earlier and the first time the ten-month total has passed $900 billion. Trade minister Kim Jung-kwan said that with exports holding above $110 billion a month, it was becoming certain that annual exports of $1 trillion would be reached within November.

The figures were helped by a calendar effect: October had more working days than a year earlier because of the timing of the Chuseok holidays. September's export growth was 83.7%. Kim also cautioned that the global trade environment remains uncertain, with rising protectionism in major economies, shifts in supply chains and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East leaving many small and medium-sized firms facing difficulties.

South Korea is a bellwether for global trade, and chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have posted surging profits on the AI investment boom.