Korea recorded a trade surplus of over USD 100 billion in the materials and parts sector for the second year in a row. The country began to record trade surpluses in the sector in 1997.
According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s report on the materials and parts sector in 2015, Korea’s exports in that sector hit USD 264.7 billion in 2015, while imports in the sector stood at USD 159.7 billion. This resulted in a trade surplus of USD 105.1 billion in 2015, topping USD 100 billion for the second year in a row, when it hit USD 107.8 billion in 2014.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announces that Korea’s trade surplus in the materials and parts sector has now exceeded USD 100 billion for two consecutive years.
China was Korea’s largest trade partner in the materials and parts sector. Korea exported USD 93.5 billion worth of materials and parts to China in 2015. The figure showed a 1.9 percent decrease from the country’s exports to China of USD 95.3 billion in that sector seen in the previous year.
Another noticeable trade partner is Vietnam and the growth of Korean exports to and imports from the Southeast Asian country have shown remarkable increases. Korea’s exports in the materials and parts sector to Vietnam were USD 17 billion in 2015, showing a 35.2 percent increase over the previous year’s USD 1.25 billion. Korean imports from Vietnam rose to USD 3.3 billion in 2015, jumping from the previous year’s USD 1.9 billion. Thanks to these increases in trade with Vietnam, Korea’s exports in the sector to ASEAN as a whole rose to USD 38.1 billion in 2015, up 2.5 percent from the USD 37.2 billion seen in 2014.
Broken down by product, Korea has shown increases in exports of electronic components, electromechanical components and computers & office devices. Korea’s exports of electronic components, including semiconductors and wireless communication devices, hit USD 93.71 billion last year, 0.5 percent higher than the USD 93.22 billion seen the previous year. Korea’s exports of electromechanical components were worth some USD 24.54 billion in 2015, jumping 3.2 percent from the USD 23.78 billion exported in 2014. Exports of computers & office devices hit USD 5.11 billion, showing a 13 percent increase over the USD 4.52 billion seen in 2014.
Korea is recording increased exports of electronic components, electromechanical components and computers & office devices in 2015. They hit USD 93.71 billion, USD 24.54 billion and USD 5.11 billion, respectively.
In the materials and parts sector, Korea recorded increased exports in nonmetallic minerals, despite difficulties such as reduced prices for raw materials due to the plunge in oil prices last year. Such increases were led by exports to China, the U.S., Japan, Vietnam and Central and South America. Korea’s exports to Vietnam in particular increased 12.7 percent to USD 2.06 billion in 2015, from the USD 1.83 billion seen the previous year.
Concerning the trade surplus in the materials and parts sector, the trade ministry praised the result, saying that, “Despite external difficulties such as a low yen, the oil price slide and weak performances among emerging economies, the materials and parts sector served as a strong pillar to keep the Korean economy moving.”
By Yoon Sojung
Korea.net Staff Writer
arete@korea.kr
