Sharp Drop in Exports for South Korea than Fellow OECD Member Countries

South Korea has been witnessing a sharp drop in exports than fellow OECD member countries because of its heavy dependence on semiconductors. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) statistics reveal that South Korea's exports dipped 5.9 per cent in January compared to a year earlier. It positioned at 26^th of the 32 OECD member countries in terms of export growth pace.

Moreover, its January exports performance ranked 15^th among 17 members of the Group of 20. An official from the Bank of Korea said South Korea suffered a sharper decline than other member countries because it is heavily dependent on chips. He also cited a slump in exports of ships and chemical goods as other reasons for the poorer-that-expected resulted."In January, the country's exports of chips sank 23.3 per cent on-year, with outbound shipments of ships and petrochemical goods falling 17.8 per cent and 4.8 per cent." However, he said South Korea expects chip sales in overseas markets and demands for new ships to improve down the road.