Latest Trade Performance: Exports and Imports in South Korea, Japan, Germany, Turkey, and Chile

South Korea reported a trade surplus of $3.2 billion in October, though its export momentum slowed, signaling potential cooling in demand for key products, including semiconductors. Customs data released Friday showed that exports, adjusted for working days, dipped 0.2% year-over-year, with overall exports rising by 4.6% at a slower rate than the previous month. Imports rose by 1.7%. The weaker export figures highlight risks to South Korea's growth outlook, given the nation's high dependence on trade. With domestic consumption fluctuating, the South Korean economy has been primarily driven by external demand this year. Following last month's shift toward looser monetary policy, this data could further motivate the Bank of Korea to hasten interest rate cuts.

In September 2024, Japan's exports were 9,037,934 million yen, down 1.7% year - on - year; imports were 9,332,032 million yen, up 2.1% year - on - year. For September 2024, in terms of exports, automobiles, mineral fuels, etc. decreased, with a year - on - year decrease of 1.7%. Additionally, for imports, computers (including peripheral equipment), electronic parts such as semiconductors, etc. increased, with an increase of 2.1%.

According to Destatis data, Germany's import prices fell by 1.3% month-over-month in September, marking the first decrease in four months, largely due to a sharp 16.1% drop in energy import costs. Excluding energy, import prices grew by 0.6% year-over-year. Costs for intermediate goods and capital goods fell by 0.4% and 0.3%, respectively, while consumer goods and agricultural product import prices rose by 2.4% and 7.3%. Meanwhile, export price inflation declined from 0.8% to 0.4%, with monthly export prices dropping slightly by 0.1%.

Data released Thursday by the Turkish Statistical Institute revealed that Turkey's trade deficit widened from $5.1 billion to $5.13 billion in September year-over-year. Exports fell by 1.9%, while imports dropped by 1.4%, with exports declining more sharply than imports. Germany remained Turkey's largest export market in September, followed by the UK, the U.S., Iraq, and Italy. Excluding energy products and non-monetary gold, the trade deficit stood at $380 million. Seasonally and calendar-adjusted data showed that exports fell by 1.2% while imports rose by 1.0% for the month.

According to *La Tercera*, Chile's total goods exports reached a record $74.15 billion in the first nine months of the year. This includes $42.72 billion in mineral exports, up 10.7% year-over-year; $6.04 billion in fresh fruit exports, up 13.8%; and $1.19 billion in wine exports, up 6%. Service exports also rose to $2.1 billion, marking a 22% increase year-over-year.