Jeju Island's Economy 'Sluggish' Due to Rising Prices and Worsening Employment

Bank of Korea Jeju Headquarters Releases Real Economy Trend Data

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Park Chang-won] As COVID-19 resurges in the Seoul metropolitan area and social distancing measures are strengthened, the number of tourists visiting Jeju has slowed, leading to continued sluggish consumption and employment.

According to the Jeju Regional Real Economy Trend data released by the Bank of Korea Jeju Branch on the 16th, the large retail store sales index in July decreased by 4.4% compared to the same month last year, and credit card usage in the second quarter fell by 15.5% year-on-year, with the decline widening. However, the consumer sentiment index in August (87.5) rose slightly compared to the previous month.

In the construction sector, the building start area and permit area in August decreased by 45.9% and 14.4% respectively compared to the same month last year, and construction orders in July also fell by 49.6% due to continued sluggishness in the private sector.

The number of tourists visiting Jeju in August decreased by 20.3% year-on-year amid a stalled recovery due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in the Seoul metropolitan area.

The shipment value of agricultural products in July increased by 28.0% year-on-year due to rising prices caused by decreased production and shipment of vegetables, while the shipment volume of seafood increased by 10.9%.

Manufacturing production in July turned to a decline due to sluggish food products (year-on-year, June 0.9 → July -1.7%), exports fell by 32.1% year-on-year due to reduced semiconductor exports, and imports also decreased by 30.2%, mainly in machinery.

As the regional economy deteriorates, the number of employed persons also decreased in August.

The number of employed persons in August decreased by 5,000 year-on-year due to sluggishness in the service sector. The employment rate (67.2%) fell by 1.4 percentage points year-on-year, while the unemployment rate (1.6%) rose by 0.1 percentage points.

Consumer prices in August rose by 0.2% year-on-year as prices of agricultural, livestock, and marine products surged sharply due to an unprecedented long rainy season and heatwave. Housing sale prices in August fell by 0.1% compared to the previous month, and land prices in July also declined by 0.1%.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.