SME exports hit record high of $64 billion in the first half, led by cosmetics and semiconductors

[Financial News] Exports by small and medium-sized enterprises in the first half of this year topped $60 billion for the first time, driven by strong demand for cosmetics and semiconductors. 
According to the '2026 First-Half Export Trends for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises' released by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on the 23rd, exports in the first half rose 11.6% from a year earlier to $64 billion, or about 94.4768 trillion won.
The number of exporting SMEs also rose 2.4% year on year to 80,490, setting a record high for any first half.
A wide range of products entered overseas markets in the first half. The top 10 export items accounted for 36.2% of total SME exports. 
By product, cosmetics posted $5.07 billion in exports, up 30.7% from a year earlier and the highest first-half figure on record. The growth was driven by expansion in North America, where online and offline channels widened, as well as in Europe, where exports increased through logistics hubs such as Poland and the Netherlands. Exports to Latin America, an emerging market, also rose sharply by 131.9%. 
The automotive sector, which relies heavily on the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Middle East, fell 15.2% from a year earlier to $3.31 billion, hit by the war in the Middle East.
By contrast, semiconductor exports ($2.28 billion) and semiconductor manufacturing equipment exports ($2.03 billion) reached record first-half highs, supported by the global boom in artificial intelligence (AI) chips and higher prices.
Medical devices came to $1.7 billion, synthetic resins to $1.57 billion, and gold, silver and platinum to $1.5 billion. 
In the case of instrumentation and control equipment, exports hit a record first-half high of $1.28 billion, helped by rising demand for equipment at local display manufacturing plants run by Vietnamese companies and stronger demand for semiconductor inspection equipment in Taiwan.  
Among SME export destinations in the first half, China accounted for the largest share at $10.48 billion.
It was followed by the United States at $9.96 billion, Vietnam at $5.63 billion, Japan at $4.73 billion, Hong Kong at $3.88 billion and Taiwan at $2.06 billion.
Online exports grew 48.6% from a year earlier to $740 million. The number of SMEs exporting online rose 30.5% to 4,051, also a record for any first half.
Shim Jae-yoon, director general for global growth policy at the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "Despite an unstable external environment, SMEs are delivering strong results by expanding into a variety of products, including K-beauty, and into emerging markets such as Latin America." He added, "We will concentrate government resources on helping domestic firms become exporters and strengthening the capabilities of exporting companies so that SMEs can grow into a driving force for exports."
[email protected] Kim Hyun-cheol Reporter