Korea posted a trade surplus of about $23.2 billion in international trade on Feb. in what officials called a "semiconductor supercycle." It was the largest monthly figure on record.
According to the balance of payments (preliminary) released by the Bank of Korea on the 6th, the current account recorded a surplus of $23.19 billion in Feb. this year. That is the largest on record, $4.49 billion more than the second-highest in Dec. 2025 ($18.7 billion). The current account surplus trend has continued for 34 months since May 2023.
The current account is a comprehensive indicator of all economic transactions between countries, including not only imports and exports of goods and services but also capital and labor, and consists of the goods balance, services balance, primary income balance, and secondary income balance. The goods balance (exports minus imports), which shows goods trade in the current account, posted a surplus of $23.36 billion. This, too, was the largest on record. The gap with the second-highest, Dec. 2025 ($18.85 billion), was $4.51 billion.
Rising exports centered on information technology (IT) led the goods surplus. Exports in Feb. totaled $70.37 billion, up 29.9% from a year earlier. Among them, exports of computer peripherals surged 183.6%, while semiconductors (157.9%) and wireless communication devices (23%) also increased. By region, exports to Southeast Asia (54.6%), China (34.1%), the United States (28.5%), the European Union (EU; 10.3%), and Japan (0.6%) rose in major markets.
Imports were $47 billion, up just 4% from a year earlier. With energy prices falling, imports of raw materials such as petroleum products (-21%), crude oil (-11.4%), and chemical products (-5.7%) decreased, which was cited as a key factor. However, imports of information and communications devices (53.8%), semiconductor manufacturing equipment (34.2%), and semiconductors (19.1%) increased.
The services balance, which includes travel, transportation, and intellectual property royalties, posted a deficit of $1.8 billion. The deficit narrowed from a month earlier (-$3.8 billion). The travel balance recorded a deficit of $1.26 billion, narrowing from the previous month (-$1.74 billion). The Bank of Korea (BOK) said the number of outbound travelers fell with the end of the winter vacation.
The primary income balance, reflecting flows of wages, dividends, and interest, posted a surplus of $2.48 billion. The surplus narrowed from a month earlier ($2.72 billion). The surplus in the dividends income balance fell from $2.3 billion to $1.98 billion, which was attributed to a decline in dividend income from overseas securities investments.
Net worth in the financial account, which shows flows of direct investment and securities investment, increased by $22.8 billion. Of that, direct investment rose by $2.87 billion. Within that, residents' direct investment abroad increased by $3.81 billion, while foreigners' direct investment in Korea increased by $940 million.
Securities investment jumped by $20.58 billion. While residents' overseas investment increased by $8.64 billion, foreigners' investment in Korea decreased by $11.94 billion. Foreign investors reduced their stock investments as they took profits amid rising domestic stock prices.
The Bank of Korea (BOK) expects the current account to hit another record in March as strong semiconductor exports continued. Yu Seong-uk, head of the BOK's Financial Statistics Department, said, "In March, despite the Middle East situation, deliveries of volumes contracted before the war kept semiconductor exports strong," explaining the backdrop.
He added, "From April onward, a rise in international oil prices due to geopolitical instability and a debate over profitability related to artificial intelligence (AI) will have a (negative) impact on the current account." He also said, "If the timing of the war's end is moved up by a cease-fire agreement between the United States and Iran, there will be a positive effect."