K-pop album exports hit record high of $257.48 million in first half of year

Korea’s exports of K-pop albums hit a record high in the first half of the year, driven in part by BTS’s fifth studio album, “Arirang,” government data showed on Friday.

K-pop album exports reached $257.48 million from January to June, up 125 percent from a year earlier, according to import and export trade statistics from the Korea Customs Service.

The United States was the largest importer of K-pop albums during the period, with imports totaling $74.12 million. China and Japan followed at $61.18 million and $45.61 million, respectively.

Rounding out the top 10 were Germany, Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Britain, France and Poland.

BTS, one of the world’s top boy bands, released “Arirang,” its first new album in three years and nine months, in March. The album and its lead single topped Billboard’s main charts.

Earlier in February, Blackpink released its third EP, “Deadline,” which sold nearly 2 million copies as of June.

Yonhap