Overseas Sales of Top 100 Companies in Q3 Reach 181.9 Trillion KRW, Up 1.6% YoY
Exports Increase as COVID-19 Restrictions Ease in China, USA, and Others
[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] The Federation of Korean Industries announced on the 24th that the overseas sales of the top 100 companies by revenue in the third quarter of this year recorded 181.9 trillion won, an increase of 1.6% compared to the same period last year.
This is because the import volumes from China and the United States, which account for about 60% of the overseas sales of the top 100 companies, recovered to the same level as the previous year from the third quarter due to the easing of COVID-19 economic activity restrictions and stimulus policies. Industrial production in the third quarter also increased by 5.8% in China and 1.3% in the United States compared to the same period last year.
However, the cumulative total sales from the first to the third quarter still decreased by 3.0% compared to the previous year, and overseas sales fell by 7.1%, maintaining a significant decline.
The Federation explained that this indicates that the global economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is the direct cause of the poor performance of the top 100 companies, which have a high dependence on overseas sales (35.1% of overseas sales for the top 100 companies as of 2019).
By industry, the electrical and electronics sector led the overall recovery of overseas sales, recording 85.4 trillion won, a 21.1% increase compared to the same period last year, driven by expanded demand in advanced markets such as North America and Europe and strong online sales.
Automobiles and automobile parts, which saw a 36.5% decrease in overseas sales in the second quarter compared to the previous year, saw only a 4.0% decrease in the third quarter as North American and European automakers resumed full-scale production and demand for automobile parts recovered. Energy, chemicals, steel, and metals continued to show sluggish performance in the third quarter.
By region, from the third quarter, as countries around the world eased COVID-19 economic activity restrictions and implemented stimulus policies, overseas sales in major regions increased by 13.7% in the Americas, 4.7% in China and Asia, and 3.4% in Europe.
A Federation of Korean Industries official said, "In the third quarter, overseas sales recovered thanks to the easing of economic activity restrictions and stimulus policies in major overseas markets, but there is a possibility that this recovery will be temporary due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in major markets from the fourth quarter onward."
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