Soaring 137.6%! Good news from the chip industry! South Korea's chip exports are booming

Recently, positive news in the global chip industry has been pouring in!

Today (February 11), data released by Korean Customs showed that in the first ten days of February, Korea’s semiconductor exports reached $6.73 billion, a year-over-year surge of 137.6%.

On the same day, Samsung Electronics’ Chief Technology Officer Song Jai-hyuk expressed confidence in the company’s leading position in the sixth-generation high-bandwidth memory, HBM4. The first batch of products is expected to ship later this month. Market expectations are that Samsung Electronics will begin shipping HBM4 products to Nvidia after the Lunar New Year holiday next week. Additionally, there were reports that the chairman of SK Group, Chey Tae-won, recently met with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in the United States to discuss HBM supply and broader AI business cooperation.

Notably, global investors are turning their attention to Asia. Today, the MSCI Asia Pacific benchmark index continued to hit new highs, rising over 1% intraday; in January 2023, the MSCI Asia Pacific index increased by 7.5%, marking the best monthly performance since 2023 and significantly outperforming the S&P 500.

Some institutions point out that the current global tech race is shifting from AI technology R&D to large-scale application deployment. Asian companies, with dominant positions in advanced chips, high-end storage, wafer manufacturing, and complete machine assembly, have become major hardware suppliers for AI infrastructure, thus attracting investor interest.

Korea’s Chip Exports Booming

Data released by Korean Customs today show that in the first ten days of February (February 1-10), Korea’s exports reached $21.39 billion, a 44.4% increase year-over-year, setting a record for the highest exports in the first ten days of a month. This growth was mainly driven by the global AI boom, with chip exports soaring during this period.

By category, in the first ten days of February, Korea’s semiconductor exports increased by 137.6% YoY to $6.73 billion, accounting for 31.5% of total exports; petroleum product exports grew by 40.1% to $1.52 billion; however, automobile exports declined by 2.6% to $1.35 billion, and ship exports fell by 29% to $663 million.

By destination, Korea’s exports to the US increased by 38.5% YoY to $3.6 billion; to China, exports rose by 54.1% to $4.55 billion. Additionally, exports to Vietnam increased by 38.1% YoY.

In the first ten days of February, Korea’s imports totaled $20.74 billion, up 21.1% YoY. Exports exceeded imports, resulting in a trade surplus of $650 million.

Data shows that Korea’s total exports last year reached $709.4 billion, a 3.8% increase YoY, the highest since records began in 2010. Analysts attribute this mainly to increased demand for AI and data centers, leading to a “super cycle” in the semiconductor industry. Moreover, due to the export focus on semiconductors, the top ten export companies accounted for 39% of total exports, up 2.4 percentage points YoY, a record high.

In Q4 2022, Korea’s exports totaled $189.8 billion, up 8.4% YoY, also a record since 2010. Semiconductor and other IT component exports increased by 33% YoY, reaching a historic high and driving Q4 growth. During the same period, imports were $162.1 billion, up 1.4% YoY.

According to data from Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, in January 2026, exports reached $65.85 billion, a 33.9% increase YoY, surpassing $60 billion for the first time and setting a new record. Driven by strong demand for AI servers, semiconductor exports hit $20.5 billion, a 102.7% surge YoY, and the second-highest monthly figure ever.

Recently, Barclays economist Bum Ki Son stated in a research report that in the first half of 2026, Korea’s chip-led exports are expected to maintain strong growth. He noted that the sharp rise in semiconductor contract prices has boosted Korea’s tech exports, with chip prices increasing by 30-40% quarter-over-quarter in Q1 2026.

Strong Performance in Asian Markets

At the start of 2026, Asian markets continued their impressive performance from last year, gaining momentum over the US and European markets. Amid volatility in tech stocks and commodities, global investors are increasingly focusing on Asia.

Bloomberg pointed out that so far this year, most Asian benchmark stock indices have risen, with local currencies showing resilience under external pressures, and credit demand pushing spreads close to historic lows. Although it is still early in the year and Asian markets are not immune to global volatility, multiple positive factors are supporting regional assets.

With changing expectations around Federal Reserve rate paths and uncertain prospects for AI transformation, confidence in US tech giants, precious metals, and cryptocurrencies is being tested. However, Asian markets have performed notably well. In January, the MSCI Asia Pacific benchmark index rose 7.5%, its best monthly performance since 2023; on Wednesday, the index continued to hit new highs, maintaining the strong momentum from 2025 and outperforming the S&P 500 and Europe’s Stoxx 600.

Currently, the global tech race is shifting from AI R&D to large-scale deployment. Asian companies, with dominant positions in advanced chips, high-end storage, wafer manufacturing, and complete machine assembly, have become key hardware suppliers for AI infrastructure, attracting investor interest.

Goldman Sachs Asia-Pacific Equity Strategist Muthun Hui said, “We maintain an overweight rating on the Korean market, which is one of our key allocation markets. The core logic is that the ongoing super cycle in storage chips continues to generate positive effects.”

The weakening US dollar also provides additional support for Asian markets: easing local currency pressures and reducing dollar-denominated debt repayment costs, which is especially beneficial for economies reliant on dollar imports. Due to concerns over deteriorating US fiscal health, investors have flocked to gold, silver, and other precious metals for hedging. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index has fallen five times over the past six months. In late January, it dropped to its lowest level since 2022, amid signals from US President Trump suggesting tolerance for dollar depreciation. In this context, Asian currency indices have risen by 0.6% this year, continuing last year’s 3% annual increase—the first annual rise in five years.

(Source: Securities Times)