Labor ministry forecasts semiconductor job gains in second half

South Korea's labor ministry said Wednesday that semiconductor employment is forecast to rise 5.1 percent, or 8,000 jobs, from a year earlier in the second half of 2026, citing stronger demand for high-value memory as investment in AI servers and data centers expands and memory prices rise.

The outlook for nine main manufacturing industries also calls for a 2.7 percent increase in shipbuilding jobs, or 3,000 positions, and a 3.5 percent decline in textiles, or 5,000 jobs, from a year earlier. Jobs in the other six industries are expected to remain near year-earlier levels.

The forecasts cover nine domestic manufacturing sectors and use employment-insurance subscriber data. The ministry treats year-on-year changes of at least 1.5 percent as growth, changes from minus 1.5 percent to less than 1.5 percent as steady, and declines below minus 1.5 percent as decreases.

High-priced liquefied natural gas carriers and large container ships are due for delivery. Domestic shipyards had an order backlog equivalent to more than three years' work as of May.

Recovering European construction-equipment demand and resource-development demand in emerging markets are expected to support machinery exports. In electronics and displays, information and communications devices and OLED panels are forecast to expand, while LCD exports and output fall amid intensifying global supply competition; hybrid and electric-vehicle exports are forecast to rise despite uncertainty linked to the Middle East war and stronger price competition.

Textile exports are expected to decline under pressure from supply-chain disruptions originating in the Middle East, U.S. trade restrictions and low-priced Chinese competition.

Steel exports are forecast to fall as protectionism strengthens in the European Union and elsewhere. In metal processing, U.S. tariff effects and Chinese competition in machine tools are expected to slow exports and production.

Employment in petroleum and chemicals is expected to hold steady even as disruptions to crude-oil and naphtha supply linked to the Middle East war weigh on the industry.