SEOUL – Qahwa World
South Korea’s coffee import bill reached a record high in 2025, driven by rising global coffee prices and a weakened local currency, according to data released on Sunday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korea imported more than 2 trillion won (US$1.38 billion) worth of coffee in 2025, marking the first time in the country’s history that coffee imports have surpassed the 2-trillion-won threshold.
Data from the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation showed that the total value of coffee imports climbed to 2.65 trillion won, representing a 41% increase compared to 2024. In U.S. dollar terms, coffee imports rose 35% year on year to US$1.86 billion, up from US$1.38 billion the previous year.
The sharp increase was largely attributed to a surge in global coffee prices, which reached a record high of more than US$4 per pound in February 2025 before easing to around US$3.5 per pound. The impact of higher prices was compounded by the weakness of the Korean won, which traded near multi-year lows for much of the year, pushing up import costs when calculated in local currency.
Despite the rise in import value, coffee import volumes declined slightly. Total coffee imports fell by 46 tons from the previous year to 215,792 tons in 2025, indicating that higher prices and currency effects—rather than increased volumes—were the primary drivers behind the record import bill.
South Korea remains one of Asia’s most active coffee markets, with sustained consumer demand continuing to support imports amid ongoing volatility in global coffee prices.
