K-Pop Album Exports Hit Record High in First Half of 2026, Strong Momentum Expected to Continue

Driven by the comebacks of major K-pop acts such as BTS and BLACKPINK, K-pop album exports reached an all-time high in the first half of this year.

According to import and export trade statistics from the Korea Customs Service, album exports from January to June totaled 257.478 million dollars, or approximately 382.3 billion won. This represents a 125% increase compared to the same period last year, marking the highest figure ever recorded for a first-half period.

By destination, the United States ranked first with approximately 110.1 billion won, unusually surpassing Japan. China followed in second place with approximately 91 billion won, and Japan ranked third with approximately 67.8 billion won.

Germany, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, and Poland rounded out the top 10 export destinations.

In the first half of this year, BTS released their 5th studio album, Arirang, in March—their first in 3 years and 9 months—dominating Billboard's main album charts. Previously, in February, BLACKPINK released their third mini-album, Deadline, which recorded nearly 2 million copies in sales by June.


In its first-half report, Luminate, a U.S. entertainment industry data analytics firm, analyzed that total U.S. CD sales in the first half of the year surged by 16% thanks to BTS's album Arirang.

The album Arirang was recorded to have sold 567,000 CDs and 331,000 LPs in the U.S. during the first half of the year.

The top 10 list for U.S. CD sales in the first half included BTS's Arirang at No. 1, followed by ENHYPEN's The Sin: Vanish at No. 2 (286,000 copies), ATEEZ's Golden Hour: Part 4 at No. 3 (263,000 copies), ATEEZ's Golden Hour: Part 5 at No. 4 (212,000 copies), Cortis's Green Green at No. 5 (169,000 copies), Stray Kids's Do It at No. 6 (141,000 copies), and Tomorrow X Together's Seventh Year: When the Wind Briefly Stops in the Thorns at No. 7 (123,000 copies).

Including the 10th-place album, SIS (Soft Is Strong, 106,000 copies) by KATSEYE, the U.S.-Korea joint girl group formed by HYBE, 8 out of the top 10 albums are K-pop related.

Following the remarkable achievements in the first half of the year, K-pop is expected to continue its global success in the second half with the return of world stars.

Celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, BIGBANG will embark on a world tour starting with a concert in Goyang from August 21 to 23.

Stray Kids will also release their new mini-album, This and That, on August 7 and challenge for their ninth No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart.

(Photo: Courtesy of Big Hit Music, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.