Exports Plunge Due to Coronavirus Lockdowns
16 April, 2020
Exports have fallen 19 percent up to now this month as the impact of the coronavirus epidemic spreads throughout Korea's economy.
Exports in the first 10 days of the month fell 18.6 percent on-year to US12.2 billion. At this specific rate, total exports in April may amount to significantly less than $40 billion for the very first time since 2010.
Major markets for Korean goods are reeling from the epidemic. Even exports of semiconductors, which take into account the largest proportion of outbound shipments, are declining, though by a smaller margin of just one 1.5 percent.
Moon Byung-ki at the Institute for International Trade said, "Because of a rise in telecommuting, demand for semiconductors for home-office networking and data storage services increased, cushioning the decline somewhat, but demand for chips for mobile devices and other products has declined sharply."
Cars, which take into account 12 percent of Korea's exports, are not immune, falling 7.1 percent, while shipments of automotive parts dropped 31.8 percent.
Many auto parts makers are temporarily shutting down production lines as Hyundai and affiliate Kia are idling plants overseas.
Exports of petrochemical products have plummeted 47.7 percent, while shipments of mobile devices dropped 23.1 percent as cellular phone shops around the world have closed.
Shipments of cellular devices to China fell 10.2 percent, to the U.S. 3.4 percent, to the EU 20.1 percent, to Vietnam 25.1 percent also to Japan seven percent.
The coronavirus pandemic shows no signs of abating around the globe, while most factories have either stopped running or plan to close down temporarily until the end of April. Some companies are considering extending factory shutdowns, including GM, which made a decision to keep its plant in Brazil closed until mid-June.
Source:
TAG(s):