In November of this year, exports increased by 8.4% compared to the same month of the previous year, breaking the record for the highest record in November. This is because exports, mainly semiconductors, continued to be strong.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry announced the “Import and Export Trends for November 2025” with this content on the 1st. According to the Ministry of Industry, exports last month were 61.04 billion dollars, up 8.4% from November last year. Although the number of working days decreased by one day compared to November of last year, the average daily export increased by 13.3%, and the overall monthly export performance also improved.
According to the Ministry of Industry, the cumulative export value from January to November (640.2 billion dollars) also reached an all-time high after 3 years. This is due to the good performance throughout this year, with monthly exports recording positive results compared to the previous year for 6 consecutive months since June. Assuming that December exports reached the same level as last year ($61.359 billion), this year's export value is likely to break through $700 billion.
It is thanks to semiconductors that this year's export performance improved even in the aftermath of uncertainty originating from the US. According to the Ministry of Industry, semiconductor exports in November of this year were 17.26 billion US dollars, up 38.6% from the same month of the previous year. This is the result of an increase in both export volume and unit price for each item due to an increase in demand for high-value memory around the world, mainly in data centers. The cumulative export value of semiconductors from January to November was 152.6 billion dollars, surpassing last year (141.9 billion dollars), which had already been the largest annual export record.
According to the Ministry of Industry, the export value of 6 of the 15 major export items, including semiconductors, increased in November. Automobile exports rose 13.7% to 6.41 billion dollars. The export performance of wireless communication devices and secondary batteries also improved by 1.6% and 2.2%, respectively. However, exports of petroleum products (-10.3%) and petrochemicals (-14.1%) lagged behind due to global oversupply.
Revenue in November was $51.3 billion, up 1.2% from the previous year. Energy imports fell 18.4% to 8.72 billion dollars, while non-energy income increased 6.4%. As a result, the trade balance showed a surplus of 9.73 billion dollars, an increase of 4.17 billion dollars over the previous year. The cumulative trade surplus from January to November was 66.7 billion dollars.
? [Breaking News] November exports increased 8.4% year over year... semiconductors increased 38.6%
