Smaller firms' exports hit new high this year

SEJONG, Nov. 30 (Yonhap) -- Exports by South Korean small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have reached an all-time high this year amid a global economic recovery, government data showed Tuesday.

As of Monday, local SMEs' overseas shipments exceeded the previous full-year record of US$105.2 billion set in 2018, according to the data from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and the Korea Customs Service.

Smaller companies' exports stood at $100.9 billion in 2019 and $100.7 billion last year.

This year's SME exports accounted for 18.2 percent of South Korea's total overseas shipments.

In the first 10 months of this year, South Korean SMEs exported $95.3 billion worth of goods, up 26.7 percent from the year-earlier period.

The number of smaller exporting companies came to 87,019 in the January-October period, up 16.3 percent from a year ago.

Plastic products registered the largest amount of exports at $4.74 billion, followed by cosmetics at $4.39 billion, chip-making equipment at $3.3 billion and medicine at $3.82 billion.

China was local SMEs' largest export market at 20 percent over the cited period, trailed by the United States at 12 percent, Vietnam at 9 percent and Japan at 8 percent, according to the data.

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