[K-Beauty Export Series②]K-Beauty Exports to China Decline in April…St...

K-Beauty Exports to China Decline in April…Structural Shift Accelerates Across Product Categories

China remains the second-largest export market for K-beauty, but recent data shows clear signs of slowing growth and structural changes across product categories.

Based on April 2026 export data from the Korea Customs Service, the Chinese market is exhibiting widening gaps in performance between product categories, along with a noticeable shift in demand patterns.

Category-Level Analysis: Diverging Performance Trends

Declining Core Categories

Traditional K-beauty strengths are showing clear signs of weakness.

Basic skincare declined from USD 97.2 million to USD 72.2 million, a drop of 25.6%, indicating a significant contraction in the largest export segment.

Sheet masks fell sharply by 36.8%, decreasing from USD 15.3 million to USD 9.6 million. Shampoo exports dropped 20.2%, from USD 4.3 million to USD 3.4 million. Eye makeup also declined by 18.3%.

These figures suggest that core skincare categories—once the foundation of K-beauty’s success in China—are now weakening.

Growth in Select Categories

At the same time, certain segments are showing signs of recovery.

Total makeup increased slightly by 4.9%. Lip makeup surged by 41.5%, from USD 1.9 million to USD 2.7 million, Face powder rose 41.0%, Children’s cosmetics increased by 39.1%.

This indicates that color cosmetics and niche categories are experiencing a partial rebound, contrasting with the decline in core skincare.

Key Insight: A Dual Structure of Decline and Recovery

The data highlights a clear structural pattern in China’s K-beauty market.

While core skincare products such as basic skincare and sheet masks are declining, certain color cosmetics segments—including lip makeup and face powder—are expanding. This reflects increasing divergence in category performance.

In other words, the traditional skincare-driven growth model is weakening, while select segments are recovering, forming a “dual structure” of contraction and growth within the market.

Market Shift: From High-Growth to Structural Rebalancing

Although China remains a key export destination, the overall trajectory is becoming clearer.

The market is transitioning from a high-growth phase into a period of structural rebalancing, characterized by:

Slowing demand for mass-market skincare, Rising interest in premium and functional products, Increasing fragmentation across product categories, Intensifying competition within each segment.

The simultaneous decline in sheet masks and basic skincare is particularly significant, as it suggests that the traditional K-beauty success formula in China is losing its effectiveness.

K-Beauty Export Analysis: Structural Shifts in China Logistics by Product Category (April 2025 vs. April 2026)

Conclusion: A “Selective Strategy” Market

China is no longer a market that can be easily expanded through volume growth alone. Instead, it is evolving into a market that requires more selective and targeted strategies.

Looking ahead, K-beauty companies will need to:

Reposition their portfolios toward color cosmetics and functional products, Target increasingly segmented consumer groups,Strengthen premium and differentiated offerings.

Ultimately, success in China will depend on a company’s ability to adopt a focused, market-specific strategy rather than a broad expansion approach.