Online Shopping Transactions Surpass 100 Trillion Won from January to July

Statistics Korea, July Online Shopping Trends

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] Online shopping transaction volume surpassed 100 trillion won through July this year. This is due to a significant increase in delivery food consumption caused by the resurgence of COVID-19.

According to the 'July Online Shopping Trends' announced by Statistics Korea on the 3rd, online shopping transaction volume in July reached 16.1996 trillion won, a 24.9% increase compared to the same month last year, marking the highest since related statistics began in 2001. As a result, the online shopping transaction volume from January to July this year increased to 108.0784 trillion won, exceeding 100 trillion won.

By product category, transaction volume for food services such as pizza and chicken, ordered online and delivered, surged 72.5% to 2.3778 trillion won compared to the same month last year.

Due to the heatwave, transactions for seasonal home appliances such as air conditioners increased, with home appliances, electronics, and telecommunications devices transaction volume (2.0623 trillion won) rising 48.3% compared to the same month last year.

A Statistics Korea official said, "The Tokyo Olympics held in July and the spread of COVID-19 increased transactions for delivery food and instant food. The heatwave boosted transactions for seasonal home appliances such as air conditioners, and increased indoor living due to COVID-19 spread led to higher transactions for daily necessities such as toilet paper."

On the other hand, due to reduced outdoor activities caused by COVID-19, transaction volumes for cultural and leisure services (-11.0%) and cosmetics (-2.2%) decreased.

Among online shopping, mobile shopping transaction volume increased 33.8% from a year earlier to 11.7139 trillion won, also setting a record high since statistics began. The share of mobile shopping transaction volume also reached an all-time high of 72.3%.

In particular, for food services, the share of mobile shopping transaction volume accounted for 97.4% of the total transaction volume. This is interpreted as a high proportion of food orders being placed through mobile delivery apps.

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