From January to April this year, China accounted for 29% of Korea's semiconductor exports, topping all countries. That share had exceeded 40% in 2022, then fell for three straight years before rebounding this time. The increase is because Chinese IT corporations are ramping up related equipment investment amid the global artificial intelligence (AI) investment boom, driving up demand for memory chips.
China has been the largest importer of Korean semiconductors for more than 20 years since 2005. From January to April this year, Hong Kong and Taiwan ranked second and third after China. The United States nearly doubled its imports of Korean semiconductors for the first time in four years but remained in fourth place.
◇ China is No. 1 for importing Korean semiconductors… "Shipments to No. 2 Hong Kong also go to China"
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources and the Korea International Trade Association on the 3rd, Korea's semiconductor exports totaled $110.4 billion from January to April this year, up 1.5 times from the same period last year. By country, shipments to China ($32.3 billion) ranked first. China's share of total semiconductor exports climbed to 40.3% in 2022, then fell to 36.6% in 2023, 32.8% in 2024, and 27.5% in 2025 for three consecutive years. That share rose again to 29.3% in January–April this year, prompting expectations it could top 30% within the year. Some also say there has been an increase in cases of U.S.-made semiconductor equipment, which the U.S. government banned from being exported to China, being rerouted to China via Korea.
Next after China, Hong Kong ranked second with 15.6% ($17.3 billion). The IT sector believes a substantial portion of semiconductors exported to Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China, enters China through re-exports. Hong Kong's share also rose slightly from 15% in 2022 to this year. Combined, China and Hong Kong account for 45% of all Korean semiconductor exports.
◇ Taiwan No. 3, U.S. No. 4… "Exports to Taiwan ultimately go to the U.S."
Taiwan, home to TSMC, is in third place. Taiwan's share of Korea's total semiconductor exports rose from 9.6% in 2022 to 14.1% in January–April this year. TSMC imports memory chips from Korea's corporations, makes products, and then exports them to U.S. company Nvidia. An industry official said, "Korean semiconductors exported to Taiwan ultimately end up being exported to the United States."
The United States is fourth. The U.S. share of Korea's total semiconductor exports was just 6.3% in 2022. But from January to April this year, it jumped to 13.8%.
At this rate, Korea's semiconductor exports are expected to remain concentrated in China and the United States, while shares for other destinations such as Japan, Singapore, and the European Union shrink for the time being.
Accordingly, there are concerns that Korea's semiconductor export performance could swing widely depending on changes in the economic conditions and industrial structures of certain countries. In particular, the fact that major Chinese semiconductor corporations have recently improved their results after boosting self-sufficiency across manufacturing processes could pose a risk for Korea.