SeoulMarkets · tag
trade
8 stories tagged “trade”, each from official Korean data with its source and timestamp.
Korea's exports show no sign of US-tariff rerouting
A popular worry is exporters rerouting around US tariffs via Vietnam or Mexico. Korea's own customs data shows the opposite over the past year: the US share of Korean exports rose 2.6 points; Vietnam and Mexico's shares both fell.
Korea's air cargo grew 10% in two years. China and Japan grew 3x that
Freight arriving in Korea from China rose 23.8% and from Japan 28.3% between July 2024 and July 2026, while total air cargo grew only 10.0%. The catch-all 'rest of Asia' bucket, still the largest single source, barely moved and lost share.
Korea's August exports: 68.7% jump, confirmed
A post shared on r/korea said Korea's August exports jumped 68.7% to $98.25bn. That matches the Korea Customs Service's own release exactly — and it's the 15th straight month of a record August-equivalent high.
Korea's biggest trade partner isn't its most vital
Rank Korea's trade by size and one or two partners top every list. But a rank measures volume, not dependence — and the countries Korea sells to are not the ones it buys from. Size is not the same as need.
Korea's trade balance, in one page: who it sells to, who it pays
Korea's trade in one page: it sells to two giants — the US and China, each about a fifth of exports — and buys energy and machines from everyone else.
Korea's ten biggest trade deficits are oil, gas, and machinery
Rank Korea's biggest trade deficits and nine of the ten sell energy or machines. The tenth sells copper. Oil, gas, and machinery are the import bill.
Korea's trade surplus comes from a handful of partners — and drains to a different set
Twelve months of customs data: Korea's goods surplus rests on the U.S., Hong Kong, Vietnam and Taiwan, and drains to where it buys energy and parts — Saudi Arabia, Japan, Australia. China, the biggest partner, nearly balances. Not advice.
China is Korea's biggest trade partner, but almost none of its surplus
China is Korea's biggest partner both ways — and the two nearly cancel. Its balance is about 5% of the national surplus on a fifth of all trade. The surplus is earned from the US, Vietnam and Taiwan; the deficits are oil, gas and machinery.