Despite a tariff shock from the United States, third-quarter exports hit an all-time high. Not only large corporations but also mid-sized corporations reached a record high in exports. A boom in the semiconductor industry driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and export corporations' diversification of markets led the increase in exports.
According to the "preliminary third-quarter 2025 trade statistics by corporate characteristics" released on the 10th by the National Data Office and the Korea Customs Service, third-quarter exports totaled $185 billion, up 6.5% from the same period a year earlier. Large corporations (5.1%), mid-sized corporations (7.0%), and small corporations (11.9%) all saw third-quarter exports rise from a year earlier.
By industry, increased semiconductor exports by large corporations and mid-sized corporations drove the overall rise in export value. With exports increasing in the electric and electronic and transport equipment institutional sectors, the mining and manufacturing export value rose 8% from the third quarter of the previous year.
In particular, a surge in SK hynix's High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) exports pushed the trade concentration of the top 10 corporations (40%) to a record high. A National Data Office official said, "Exports increased across large corporations, mid-sized corporations, and small corporations, but with a sharp jump in semiconductor exports, the trade concentration of the top 10 corporations hit an all-time high."
In the third quarter of this year, despite export declines to major countries, diversified export markets produced solid results. By country, exports to the United States fell 3.9% from a year earlier, and exports to China decreased 1.8%. In contrast, exports to Southeast Asia rose 17.4% year over year, the European Union (EU) region increased 5.8%, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region jumped 28%.
A National Data Office official said, "While auto exports to the United States fell, electric vehicle exports to the EU region and used car exports to the Commonwealth of Independent States rose sharply," adding, "Diversifying export markets offset the decline in exports to the United States."