South Korea's exports nearly doubled in October as chip shipments rose 259%. The AI memory boom, measured

South Korea's exports rose 93.7% year over year to $115.28 billion in October, the fastest growth since January 1974, Reuters reported from government data released Sunday. Semiconductor exports jumped 259.4% to $56.44 billion, according to the trade ministry.

Why it matters: Korea is home to Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, two of the largest memory makers, so its monthly trade figures are one of the earliest hard reads on AI hardware demand. October's numbers show chips now account for almost half of everything the country ships abroad.

The numbers

Sources: Reuters and Xinhua, citing the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources. The chip share is TechMeasured's calculation: $56.44B ÷ $115.28B ≈ 49%.

Some context keeps the headline honest:

• Not a monthly record. Xinhua notes October was the second-highest month on record, behind September's $121.1 billion.
• Calendar effects. Reuters says part of the year-over-year jump came from extra working days, because the Chuseok holidays fell differently than in 2025.
• Broad by destination. Reuters reports exports to the US rose 185.8%, to China 133.6%, to Southeast Asia 128.0% and to Europe 56.4%.
• A trillion-dollar year. Trade minister Kim Jung-kwan said Korea will pass $1 trillion in annual exports within November. Reuters says that would make it the fourth country to do so, after the US, China and Germany.

Price, not just volume

The ministry attributed the chip surge to both higher prices and higher volumes, plus continued data-center investment by big tech firms competing in AI, according to Reuters. Computer exports rose 496.6%, which Reuters links to server demand for AI services. Xinhua says AI infrastructure investment pushed memory chip prices up.

The pricing trend shows up in research forecasts too. In July, TrendForce projected that DRAM contract prices would rise 13–18% quarter over quarter in 3Q26, while noting that the gains were moderating. That is a forecast, not a measured outcome, but it is consistent with the ministry's account of prices doing much of the work.

What the chipmakers just reported

Korea's two big memory makers both posted record quarters:

Samsung figures as reported by TrendForce; SK hynix figures as reported by The Korea Times.

According to The Korea Times, SK hynix said its HBM and other DRAM products are sold out through 2029. The company said more than half of its 2027 and 2028 production capacity is covered by long-term agreements, and it expects supply to trail demand through 2030. Its operating margin was about 80%. TrendForce reports that HBM4 began contributing meaningfully to Samsung's results in Q3 on demand tied to Nvidia's Vera Rubin accelerators. It adds that Samsung and Micron both expect memory supply to stay tight through 2028.

The boom has a cost elsewhere. TrendForce notes that higher component prices are squeezing Samsung's own phone and consumer-electronics division. That division posted its first-ever quarterly operating loss in Q2, and analysts expected the Q3 loss to widen.

What to watch

• November trade data. The $1 trillion milestone is expected this month. The more useful signal is whether chip exports hold above $50 billion once the working-day boost fades.
• Memory contract prices. If DRAM price increases keep moderating, Korean export growth should slow even if AI demand holds up.
• Device prices. Sold-out memory through 2029 means PC and phone makers face higher component costs. Expect more of that in hardware pricing over the next year.