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Cargo containers filled with export products are loaded onto ships at a dock in the Port of Busan, in the city’s Nam District. (Yonhap News)

As of 2019, a total of 69 South Korean products held the highest share of their type in the export market. Korea was ranked 11th in the world in terms of the number of market-leading products, its highest rank since statistics began being tracked in 2002.

These figures appeared in a report titled “Current Competitiveness of Korean Exports: Examining Top-Ranked Products in the Global Export Market.” The report was published Monday by the International Trade and Commerce Research Institute, associated with the Korea International Trade Association.

According to the report, the country with the most market-leading products was China, at 1,759, up 43 from the previous year. China has remained in first place for five years in a row. The next countries on the list were Germany (654), the US (520), Italy (217), and Japan (156).

Korea had 69 market-leading products, representing an increase of seven from the previous year. In 11th place, Korea rose two positions from the year before.

Among Korea’s export products, 16 rose to first place while nine others dropped down from first place. Chemical products (27) and steel and non-ferrous metals (18) accounted for 65.2 percent of Korea’s market-leading products.

The survey analyzed data provided by Comtrade, a database of international trade statistics maintained by the UN. The survey covered 5,204 categories of products, based on the six-digit HS code that is the global standard.

The Korean products that have risen to first place include solid state drives (SSD, US$4.71 billion), in the category of semiconductor-using storage devices; oxometallic acid salts (US$1.96 billion), in the category of chemical products; and hot rolled steel (US$1.63 billion), in the category of steel and non-ferrous metals.

In particular, SSDs seem to be establishing themselves as a future driver of exports in South Korea. Their yearly export volume has risen rapidly, from US$2.08 billion in 2018 to US$4.71 billion in 2019 and then on to US$10.12 billion in 2020.

By Cho Kye-wan, staff reporter

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