Korea’s export milestone masks growing risks from heavy reliance on semiconductors
Korea’s export growth is increasingly dependent on semiconductors, deepening polarization in the export structure despite increases in total outbound shipments, data showed Sunday. Although the country is on track to see its exports exceed $700 billion for the first time this year, strong performance in a limited number of sectors has masked widespread weakness across the broader export base, where many industries are slipping into a prolonged downturn. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, only five of Korea’s 15 flagship export items posted year-on-year growth during the January-November period, when outbound shipments totaled $640.2 billion, a 2.9 percent year-on-year increase. Among the five sectors, meaningful gains were largely confined to semiconductors, ships and biohealth, which rose 19.8 percent, 28.6 percent and 7 percent, respectively. By contrast, automobiles and computers posted only marginal increases of 2 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively. Exports in the 10 other sectors contracted at an alarming pace, each recording clear year-on-year declin
