Card Approval Amount 37.4 Trillion... Kosepe, Spark for Domestic Demand Stimulation in Q4

Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Announces Comprehensive Results of '2020 Korea Sale Festa'
Domestic Card Approval Amount 37.4 Trillion KRW...6.3% Increase YoY
Car Purchases Up 31.9%, Boosting Domestic Demand
Regional Love Gift Certificates Issued Up 14.9%...180 Million USD Export Consultations

On the afternoon of the 13th, during the '2020 Korea Sale Festa' period, Sung Yun-mo, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, greets Chinese viewers during a live commerce broadcast at a cosmetics store inside AK Plaza Bundang in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do. (Image source=Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The sales revenue of the '2020 Korea Sale Festa,' held from the 1st to the 15th to boost the domestic economy in the fourth quarter, reached 37.4 trillion KRW.

Park Jin-gyu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Kim Yeon-hwa, Chairperson of the Korea Sale Festa Promotion Committee, announced this during the '2020 Korea Sale Festa Comprehensive Results' briefing held at the Government Seoul Office at 11 a.m. on the 20th.

Automobiles up 32%, Electronics up 40% in Sales... Contributing to Domestic Demand Revitalization

During the 2020 Korea Sale Festa period, on the afternoon of the 10th, Korea Sale Festa banners were hung on the streets of Myeongdong, Seoul. (Image source=Yonhap News)

The most important consumer goods showed a clear increase in sales. The Korea Sale Festa achieved its intended results.

The Korea Sale Festa card approval amount was 37.4 trillion KRW, a 6.3% increase compared to the same period last year.

Domestic sales of the five major automakers averaged 7,074 units per day, up 31.9%, and eco-friendly vehicle sales averaged 997 units per day, increasing by 155.7%.

Sales of electronic products reached 660 billion KRW, a 39.5% increase compared to the same period last year.

The 'Korea Fashion Market Season 2,' planned to expand sales in the fashion industry, recorded sales of 16.24 billion KRW, achieving more than four times the results of Season 1 in the first half of the year.

Online Distribution Continues Strong... Traditional Markets Sales Up 26%

During the 2020 Korea Sale Festa on the afternoon of the 2nd, Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, visited Haengbokhan Sesang, a department store dedicated to small and medium enterprises in Mok-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, to promote products. (Photo by Yonhap News)

This year, due to the impact of COVID-19, online retail performed well while offline was sluggish. The Korea Sale Festa continued the strong performance of online sales and somewhat recovered offline sluggishness.

The eight major online shopping malls recorded sales of 3.19 trillion KRW during the Korea Sale Festa period, a 27% increase compared to the same period last year.

The most notable offline increase was in traditional market sales, which rose by 25.5%.

Sales of five convenience store chains reached 1 trillion KRW, up 3.9% compared to the same period last year. Offline sales of three department stores were 1.5418 trillion KRW, a 5.4% increase from the same period last year. Offline sales of three major large marts also increased by 1.4% to 924.7 billion KRW compared to the previous year.

Additionally, the issuance amount of local love gift certificates prepared by 17 provinces nationwide was 525 billion KRW, an average increase of 14.9% compared to October. Sales of Onnuri gift certificates reached 194.1 billion KRW, increasing 4.8 times compared to the same period last year.

K-Quarantine and K-Beauty Generate $180 Million in Export Consultations

Five major export consultation product groups at the online Korean Wave product exhibition. (Source: Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy)

In specific sectors such as 'K-Quarantine' and 'K-Beauty,' export consultations were conducted as well as domestic sales. Approximately $180 million USD (about 201.1 billion KRW) worth of consultations took place, totaling 2,091 cases.

In the online Hallyu product exhibition, 1,433 small and medium enterprises participated, conducting export consultations worth $125.76 million USD (about 140.5 billion KRW) in cosmetics, medical devices, food, and other sectors. The number of consultations was 1,145. Through this, export contracts worth $26.62 million USD (about 2.97 billion KRW) are being pursued.

For the first time this year, the Korea Sale Festa was linked with the Busan International Fisheries Expo to hold a three-day 'Online Video Overseas Buyer Trade Consultation' from the 5th to the 7th, with 160 overseas companies participating and conducting trade consultations worth $55.46 million USD (about 61.9 billion KRW). The number of consultations was 946.

In business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions, 3,980 companies entered 115 overseas online distribution channels in 28 countries worldwide to participate in sales promotion events. Offline showrooms and live commerce were operated together in Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

On the 7th, an 'Untact Hallyu Expo Opening Performance' was held targeting consumers in the New Southern countries, recording an audience of 163,000.

Public response was higher than in previous years. According to the Korea Distribution Science Association and the Korea Sale Festa Promotion Committee, the amount of information in articles, SNS, etc., during the Korea Sale Festa period was 22,123 cases, 3.4 times more than last year.

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