[Economy 365]

South Korea's exports last month increased by 63% compared to a year earlier, driven by a strong boom in the semiconductor sector.

According to the Korea Customs Service, total exports in July reached $99 billion. Among them, exports by large corporations surged 90.7% to $74.4 billion.

The overall upward trend was led by large enterprises, with their semiconductor exports soaring by 228.3% and computer peripherals jumping 389.5% due to the expansion of AI server investments.

Exports by medium-sized enterprises also rose by 8.7% and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by 17.9%, continuing their upward streak for five consecutive months, though their growth rates fell far short of those of large corporations.

Consequently, the proportion of total exports accounted for by large corporations stood at 75.2%, expanding 10.9 percentage points from a year ago.

On the other hand, the shares of medium-sized enterprises and SMEs declined to 12.8% and 11.8%, respectively.

By region, large corporate exports spiked by 196.8% in Gyeonggi Province, where semiconductor companies are clustered, and by 159.9% in South Chungcheong Province.

*This article was produced with AI audio.