South Korea’s exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries are on the rise, helping offset recent drops in shipments to the United States and China amid a global trade war sparked partly by the U.S.’ evolving tariff policies, data showed on Sunday.
Outbound shipments to the ASEAN region came to US$47.88 billion in the January-May period, up 4.3 percent from the same period last year, according to data compiled by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA).
Over the same period, South Korea’s exports to the U.S. went down 4.3 percent as effects of the Donald Trump administration’s tariff policies began to materialise, while shipments to China dropped 5 percent, reports Yonhap news agency.
In February, exports to ASEAN economies recorded $9.56 billion, surpassing monthly shipments to China, which stood at $9.5 billion, for the first time in 23 years.
Shipments to ASEAN exceeded those to China again in March, at $10.26 billion to $10.06 billion.
In May, exports to the U.S. decreased 8.4 percent on-year to $10.05 billion, while those to China contracted 8.1 percent to $10.4 billion due to the effects of the Trump administration’s sweeping tariff policies. Shipments to ASEAN fell 1.3 percent to $10 billion in the month.
w9owop