South Korea's March exports continue to soar; chip demand remains strong amid escalating Iran conflicts

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South Korea’s exports continued to surge in March, with strong demand for chips helping the country’s economy stay resilient amid heightened external risks as the Iran war intensifies.

Data released by South Korean customs on Wednesday showed that, after adjusting for differences in working days, March exports rose 41.9% year over year. Unadjusted exports grew 48.3% year over year, higher than the February full-month revised increase of 28.7%; imports rose 13.2%, resulting in a trade surplus of $25.74 billion.

Driven by ongoing global investment in artificial intelligence and data centers, semiconductors continue to propel South Korea’s export growth.

These latest figures show that, despite greater headwinds from soaring energy prices and geopolitical uncertainty, South Korea’s export engine is still running at high speed. The Iran war has pushed up crude oil prices, exposing an inflation risk for the South Korean economy, which is highly dependent on overseas energy supplies.

To mitigate the economic impact of the Middle East crisis, the South Korean government rolled out a supplementary budget of 262.0 trillion won (about $17 billion) to support consumers and businesses. This includes measures to ease pressure from oil prices, as well as assistance for low-income households and small business owners.

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Byline: Wang Yongsheng