South Korea hikes 2026 growth outlook to 3 pct on AI chip boom
South Korea raised its 2026 growth forecast by one percentage point to three percent on July 13, buoyed by strong performances from memory chipmakers as artificial intelligence demand soars.
Record profits from semiconductor giants Samsung Electronics and SK hynix — whose advanced memory chips are essential for the fast-evolving AI sector — have fuelled optimism over the country's economic outlook.
The government has unveiled an ambitious economic agenda and has said it plans to invest an expected windfall from tech giants' taxes into public projects.
"We had initially projected this year's real economic growth rate at two percent, but we have now revised our forecast upward to three percent," Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol told a cabinet meeting Tuesday.
