2023-06-07 13:59:59
Yonhap News Agency reported that China’s “undisputed number one position” in South Korea’s export market is being shaken. However, the analysis blamed China, saying that the changes in South Korea’s export market are closely related to the slow recovery of China’s economy and the sluggish recovery of domestic demand. Under such circumstances, South Korea’s exports to the United States increased, and the United States became South Korea’s largest trade surplus country in the first quarter of this year.
According to data released by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Energy of South Korea on the 6th, the export volume to China from January to May this year was 49.7 billion US dollars, a year-on-year decrease of 27.3%.
In January, the export volume to China was US$9.2 billion, which fell below US$10 billion in three years since January 2020. As of May, the export volume to China has been hovering around US$10 billion.
Since June last year, South Korea’s exports to China have shown a negative growth trend for 12 consecutive months. In the past year, except for September last year, the trade deficit with China has been in deficit in the rest of the months.
China’s share of South Korea’s total exports is also falling, from 25.3 percent in 2021 to 22.8 percent last year and then to 19.5 percent in the first quarter of this year, according to the Korea International Trade Association.
Looking at the growth rate of exports of major products to China in the first quarter of this year, semiconductors (-44.6%), petroleum products (-20.6%), petrochemicals (-26.2%), steel (-23.9%), and auto parts (-34%) , display (-52.8%), secondary battery (-38.7%).
According to data from the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Energy of South Korea on the 1st, South Korea’s exports shrank for the eighth consecutive month in May, and it has been in deficit for 15 consecutive months.
Yonhap News Agency pointed out that due to the impact of the epidemic, China’s economic recovery has been slow, domestic demand recovery has been weak, and China’s intermediate goods have become more independent. Changes in the Korean export market are closely related to this.
According to the Korea International Trade Association, in the first quarter of this year, South Korea had a trade surplus of US$7.2 billion with the United States, making the United States the country with the largest trade surplus in South Korea. It was followed by Vietnam ($5.7 billion), India ($2.8 billion) and Turkey ($2.1 billion).
In terms of products exported to the US, petroleum products (30.5%), petrochemicals (24.7%), steel (26.6%), auto parts (16.2%), secondary batteries (50.0%), plastic products (15.9%), etc. The export value of the 7 items all increased.
In the past year, South Korea’s exports to the United States have remained at about US$9 billion per month, and it has performed well despite the deficit in South Korea’s trade balance. Especially in April last year, South Korea’s exports to the United States were US$9.184 billion, which was only US$330 million less than South Korea’s exports to China (US$9.517 billion).
According to the report, in the first quarter of this year, the export of intermediate products to China decreased by 29.6%, and the proportion of intermediate product exports to the United States reached 13.6%, an increase of 1.7 percentage points compared with 2021. Compared with 2021, the proportion of South Korea’s exports to India (2.9% → 3.7%) and Australia (1.3% → 2.7%) has also increased.
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