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Exports from Jeju boom in 2025 as nation logs 3.6% rise in outbound shipments

Published: 20 Feb. 2026, 19:01

Export-bound containers are stacked at a terminal in Incheon on Feb. 11. [NEWS1]

A global semiconductor boom drove Jeju Island’s exports up more than 80 percent last year, boosting chip hubs like North Chungcheong. Seoul, on the other hand, saw production and consumption lose steam.

According to a quarterly and annual regional economic report released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics on Friday, national exports rose 3.6 percent on year in 2025, with outbound shipments increasing in 12 cities and provinces and decreasing in five.

Among the regions that recorded growth, Jeju stood out with an 80.2 percent on-year jump, far outpacing others. In the fourth quarter of 2025 alone, exports from the island soared 87.2 percent compared to the same period a year earlier.

The shift is notable for Jeju, where tourism has traditionally accounted for a large share of the local economy. Exports of semiconductors and aircraft parts led the increase. Chips made up 61.8 percent of Jeju’s total exports last year, while machinery products, including passenger vehicles and aircraft parts, accounted for 10.5 percent.

Jeju Semiconductor, one of the country’s leading fabless memory companies, is headquartered on the island.

North Chungcheong also benefited from the semiconductor boom. The province, where numerous chipmakers are concentrated, saw annual exports climb 26.8 percent last year.

In addition to Jeju and North Chungcheong, Gwangju reported a 12.6 percent increase in exports, driven by memory chips, processors and controllers, as well as other integrated circuit semiconductors and related parts, according to the Data Ministry.

By contrast, exports declined in Sejong, down 10.1 percent; South Jeolla, down 8.9 percent; and North Gyeongsang, down 4.6 percent, weighed by weak shipments of artificial plastics and copper products, diesel fuel and organic and inorganic compounds.

North Chungcheong saw improvements beyond exports. Mining and manufacturing output rose 12.6 percent, retail sales increased 2.6 percent and the employment rate edged up 1.3 percent, indicating that the semiconductor industry’s recovery had a spillover effect on local production and consumption.

Pedestrians walk alongside the ocean in Jeju Island on Feb. 15. [YONHAP]

Major metropolitan cities such as Seoul, however, showed a contrasting trend. In the capital, mining and manufacturing output fell 7.7 percent and retail sales dropped 2.7 percent, marking declines in both production and consumption.

Busan recorded a 4.1 percent decrease in mining and manufacturing output and a 2.5 percent drop in exports.

In the fourth quarter of 2025, national mining and manufacturing output slipped 3.3 percent on year, with particularly sharp declines in Sejong, down 9.2 percent; Seoul, down 7.2 percent; and Busan, down 7.1 percent. Weakness in electrical equipment, food products and automobiles and trailers weighed on production.

Meanwhile, output increased in North Chungcheong, up 11.1 percent; Incheon, up 5.1 percent; and Ulsan, up 2 percent, led by semiconductors, electronic components and other machinery equipment.

Seoul also saw a population outflow. A net 26,769 people left the capital last year. In contrast, Gyeonggi attracted a net inflow of 32,970 people and Incheon 32,264, highlighting the ongoing trend of residents moving to areas outside Seoul in the greater capital region to avoid high housing costs in the city.

However, compared to periods in the past when Seoul’s annual net outflow exceeded 100,000, the pace of population decline has slowed. Outside the capital region, North Chungcheong and South Chungcheong also recorded net inflows of about 10,800 and 8,300 people, respectively.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY NAM SOO-HYOUN [[email protected]]