Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced today that Korea’s exports and imports for the month of June 2025 advanced 4.3 percent and 3.3 percent year-on-year to USD 59.8 billion and $50.7 billion, respectively. The trade balance stood at a surplus of $9.1 billion.

June exports and the daily average export value both hit all-time highs for the month, the latter increasing 6.8 percent to $2.9 billion when accounting for the number of working days (-0.5 compared to June 2024).

By item, six out of 15 major items gained in exports. Semiconductors reached new highs at $15.0 billion (up 11.6 percent), maintaining the upward trajectory for the fourth consecutive month. Exports of computers and solid-state drives (SSDs) climbed 15.2 percent to $1.3 billion, expanding for the second straight month.

Automobiles grew 2.3 percent to a fresh high of $6.3 billion for the month, as electric vehicles (EVs) enjoyed strong demand across the EU alongside robust growth of secondhand car exports (up 67.9 percent to $0.7 billion). This is the first time for Korea’s total automobile exports to enter the 6 billion thresholds for the fifth consecutive month.

Bio-health hit record highs at $1.7 billion (up 36.5 percent) on the backs of biopharmaceuticals (up 54.0 percent to $1.1 billion). Ship exports surged 63.4 percent to $2.5 billion, advancing for the fourth consecutive month.

Meanwhile, petroleum products (down 2.0 percent to $3.6 billion) and petrochemicals (down 15.5 percent to $3.4 billion) continued to slide in step with weak global oil prices.

Aside from major items, agricultural and fishery products (up 7.7 percent to $1.0 billion), cosmetics (up 22.0 percent to $1.0 billion), and electrical equipment (up 14.8 percent to $1.6 billion) all logged unprecedented highs for the month of June.

By region, exports to seven out of nine major destinations saw growth.

Exports to the U.S. and China inched down 0.5 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively, to $11.2 billion and $10.4 billion. To ASEAN, exports ended the monthly decline and rose 2.1 percent to $9.8 billion, driven by semiconductors, ships, and steel products. Exports to the EU (up 14.7 percent to $5.8 billion) posted growth for the fourth consecutive month, led by automobiles, car parts, ships, and petroleum products.

India-bound exports improved 2.3 percent to $1.6 billion, a record high for the month. To CIS countries, exports soared 18.5 percent to $1.1 billion, increasing for the fourth consecutive month. Exports to Latin America (up 3.3 percent to $2.4 billion), Japan (up 3.0 percent to $2.5 billion), and the Middle East (up 14.8 percent to $1.9 billion) all resumed growth.

In addition, exports to Taiwan jumped 31.0 percent to $4.3 billion, setting historic highs for June.

As for imports, non-energy items hiked 7.9 percent to $42.2 billion, whereas energy imports declined 14.6 percent to $8.6 billion. 

Korea’s exports for the first half of 2025 remained relatively flat year-on-year at $334.7 billion (down 0.03 percent) and the daily average export value, accounting for the number of working days, gained 2.3 percent to $2.6 billion. Imports contracted 1.6 percent to $306.9 billion and the trade balance netted a surplus of $27.8 billion (up $4.8 billion year-on-year).

Five out of 15 major items led the increase during the first half, namely semiconductors (up 11.4 percent to $73.3 billion), wireless communication devices (up 8.5 percent to $7.5 billion), computers (up 12.6 percent to $5.9 billion), ships (up 18.8 percent to $13.9 billion), and bio-health (up 11.0 percent to $8.2 billion). Notably, semiconductors surpassed previous first-half highs, powered by solid demand for high value-added products like DDR5s and HBMs as well as the rebound in fixed prices of key memory chips.