KOREAN NET

Exports in the first half of this year reached USD 334.7 billion, showing little effects from the impact of U.S. tariffs. Shown is Gwangyang Port in Gwangyang, Jeollanam-do Province. (Yeosu Gwangyang Port Authority)

By Park Hye Ri

Exports in the first half of the year were largely unaffected by the imposition of U.S. tariffs.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on July 1 released its report on June export and import trends showing that overseas shipments from January through last month hit USD 334.7 billion. The figure was down 0.03% year on year but marked the third-highest sum for the period in history.

Among the nation's 15 major export items, five saw growth in the first half: semiconductors, wireless communications, computers, ships and biohealth.

The star was chips for posting record-high exports of USD 73.27 billion, up 11.4% year on year, thanks to surging demand for high value-added memory semiconductors such as high bandwidth memory and DDR5.

Exports of cars, which had grown stagnant due to tariffs, also inched up 1.7% to USD 36.4 billion.

Among Korea's nine major market regions, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, European Union, Middle East, India and Commonwealth of Independent States all saw growth in the volume of Korean exports.

Those to the U.S., which ranked first, fell 3.7% and those to No. 2 China declined 4.6%.

Imports in the first half of this year dipped 1.6% to USD 306.9 billion, leading to a trade surplus of USD 27.8 billion.

"In the first half of the year, our exports maintained the level of that in the previous year despite unprecedented uncertainty in the global commerce and trade environment such as U.S. tariffs, slow economic recovery and the Middle Eastern situation," Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Ahn Dukgeun said.

"The government will do everything it can in trade negotiations with the U.S. and quickly devise export support measures such as trade finance and search for alternative markets."

hrhr@korea.kr