Monthly trade infographics

Plastics drive Korea's highest-ever exports in 2021

Plastics sales overseas reach $4.7 billion as of October, making up the biggest share of Korea's total exports

Jan 24, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)

2 Min read

Plastics rise as Korean SMEs’ main export

Many Korean small and medium enterprises performed exceptionally amid the economic recovery in 2021, particularly in the COVID-19 test kit and semiconductor chip equipment industries. Exports from Korea hit a record high last year, and plastics sales overseas took the biggest share. Exports of plastics surpassed $2.8 billion in the first half of 2021, exceeding $4.7 billion last October.

Source: INNOPOLIS Foundation

Plastics product exports

Boosted by global battery and smartphone market growth, plastics exports from Korea surpassed $2.8 billion in the first half of 2021, up 16.3% on-year.

Unit: billion dollars, %

Source: Ministry of SMEs and Startups

Shares, % change in Korean SMEs' exports

	Top five export products	Share	% change
1	Plastics	4.9	29.1
2	Cosmetics	4.8	21.3
3	Car components	3.5	77.6
4	Synthetic resin	3.4	68.1
5	Chip equipment	3.4	17.6

Biggest importers of plastics from Korea

China is the largest importer of Korean plastics. The US and Vietnam are the second and third- largest importers of Korean plastics, respectively. Plastic exports from Korea to China and the US respectively rose by 24.9% and 14.7% in the second quarter of 2021, compared with the same period in 2020. The increase rates for both came in at quarterly record highs. Battery separators particularly led plastic exports to China, while polyvinyl chloride (PVC) flooring materials and functional films to liquid-crystal display (LCD) drove exports to Vietnam and the US, respectively.

Source: Ministry of SMEs and Startups (Unit: million dollars)

The % in brackets are YoY percentage changes.

Domestic and overseas eco-friendly plastic markets

The global bioplastic and biopolymer markets are expected to grow from $3.5 billion in 2017 to $6.3 billion in 2022, with an annual growth of 12.6%. The Korean market of bioplastic and biopolymer is forecast to reach $148.8 million by 2023.