S. Korea's exports of agricultural, food products rise 5 pc this year: Data

Seoul, Nov 7
South Korea's exports of agricultural and food products increased 5 percent from a year earlier in the first 10 months of 2025, driven by strong demand in the Middle East, the European Union (EU) and North America, data showed on Friday.

Outbound shipments of agricultural goods and food products reached US$8.59 billion in the January-October period, compared with $8.18 billion a year ago, according to the data compiled by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, reports Yonhap news agency.

Shipments to the Middle East spiked 20.4 percent on-year in the 10-month period, with exports to the European Union surging 14.8 percent and those to North America soaring 13.9 percent.

In the July-October period, exports to the United States only inched up 0.6 percent, apparently due to escalating U.S. tariffs, but shipments to the Middle East jumped 23.5 percent, driven by robust demand for Korean ice cream, beverages and sauces, according to the data.

Combined exports to China, Hong Kong and Taiwan expanded 7.7 percent on-year over the four-month period, with shipments of instant noodles, called "ramyeon" in Korean, soaring 62.9 percent.

Overall exports of ramyeon climbed 21.7 percent on-year to $520 million in the July-October period.

Shipments of coffee products advanced 21.3 percent to $130 million, while kimchi exports went up 6.4 percent.

Exports of grapes and ice cream soared 50.9 percent and 22.1 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, South Korean shares traded more than 2 per cent down late Friday morning, as big-cap tech shares tracked overnight losses on Wall Street sparked by woes over an artificial intelligence (AI) bubble and jobs.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) had tumbled 83.94 points, or 2.08 percent, to 3,942.51 as of 11:20 a.m.

Overnight, major U.S. indexes closed lower on revived fears over stretched valuation of AI-related shares and data showing a cooling labor market.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.84 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite dipped 1.9 percent, and the S&P 500 went down 1.12 percent.