DAEGU < invest Korea

According to Newsis,

Daegu-si announced on January 18th that the Daegu region recorded high export performance that surpassed the base effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, as shown by coming out of the export slump last year and exceeding the export performance recorded in 2019 (USD 7.5 billion).

According to the trade statistics of the Korea International Trade Association, Daegu's regional exports amounted to USD 7.93 billion, up 26.6% from the previous year, which is higher than the number recorded in 2019 (USD 7.5 billion) before the COVID-19 pandemic, and the second highest figure since 2018 (USD 8.1 billion).

In 2020, regional exports were also adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to multiple crisis such as global production and supply disruptions and restrictions on movement between countries. During this period, regional exports were hit hard, recording USD 6.26 billion, down 16.4% from the previous year, showing a sharp decline in machinery and textiles.

However, Daegu's exports recorded high by reaching USD 7.93 billion, up 26.6% from the previous year, in line with a recovery trend of global trade in 2021. In particular, the region achieved an all-time high of monthly exports (USD 812 million) in December 2021, breaking the previous record.

In Daegu, exports of automobile parts and fine chemical raw materials were strong driven mainly by the US and China markets. Although auto parts only increased by 27.9% due to production disruptions caused by instability in the supply of semiconductors for vehicles, demand for fine chemical raw materials rose explosively due to increasing demand for secondary battery,

In addition, exports of agricultural machinery increased by 62.4%, driven by the North American market, and exports of textiles, a raw and subsidiary material, also grew significantly as the COVID-19 situation in emerging countries specialized in clothing stabilized.

In this year too, there still remain unfavorable factors such as the spread of COVID variants, delay in supply chain recovery, and continued high inflation. However, the global economy is expected to continue to grow driven by recovery trend.

According to the report '2021 Export and Import Assessment and Prospect for Daegu-Gyeongbuk' by the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Office of the Korea International Trade Association, rechargeable battery materials will lead regional exports this year, while exports of auto parts could decline due to the lack of semiconductors for vehicles. All in all, the report estimated regional exports this year would reach USD 8.1 billion, up 1.9 % from the previous year.

In order to maintain the momentum for exports growth, Daegu plans to discover and push for new projects including holding a virtual business meeting utilizing metaverse to support digital trade of companies, overseas platform utilization projects, and carrying out various overseas marketing projects to support local companies by subsidizing export logistical costs in preparation for logistics crisis, among others.

jco@newsis.com

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Source: Newsis (January 18, 2022)