Foreigners' Card Spending in South Korea Jumps Nearly Tenfold in Three and a Half Years

[Economy 365]

An analysis shows that card payments made by foreigners in South Korea have increased about tenfold over the past three and a half years.

According to an analysis of overseas card sales at merchants linked to Cash Note by Korea Credit Data, overseas card sales in June reached 9.6 times the figure from January 2023.

The proportion of overseas cards out of total card sales also rose from 0.2% to 1.2% over the same period.

Over the past year, 65% of overseas card sales occurred in Seoul, while Busan recorded the highest sales growth rate at 60%.

Among overseas card sales in the service sector, dermatology clinics accounted for 40%, plastic surgery clinics for 14%, and other hospitals and clinics for 9%.

The average spending per foreign customer in the service sector stood at 166,000 won, which is 3.5 times that of domestic customers.

However, 66.9% of overseas card sales were concentrated in the top 1% of stores.

The average monthly overseas card sales in Seoul's tourism special zones reached 3,483,000 won, significantly surpassing the 299,000 won recorded in neighborhood commercial districts.

*This article was produced with AI audio.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.