"Post-Distancing Lift, Seoul's Major Commercial Areas Show Consumption Recovery... Clear Trend in University Districts for New Semester"

KB Kookmin Card, Offline Merchant Sales Data Analysis

As the transition to 'With Corona' approaches, major universities are gradually switching to face-to-face classes, bringing some liveliness back to campuses and surrounding commercial areas. On the 19th, Ewha Womans University campus in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, is regaining its vibrancy with students./Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] With the end of social distancing measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic, consumption in major commercial districts within Seoul has shown a clear recovery trend.

KB Kookmin Card announced on the 16th that an analysis of sales data from offline merchants in Seoul over the past six months revealed that after the complete lifting of operating hour restrictions, the number of sales transactions and sales amounts after 6 p.m. increased by 44% and 60%, respectively, compared to the period when operating hours were restricted until 9 p.m.

KB Kookmin Card first divided the investigation period according to Seoul's operating hour restrictions due to social distancing: the period when the restriction was until 9 p.m. (December 18, 2021 ? February 18, 2022), 10 p.m. (February 19 ? March 4), 11 p.m. (March 5 ? April 1), midnight (April 2 ? 17), and the period after the full lifting of restrictions (April 18 ? May 8).

According to the investigation, compared to the 9 p.m. restriction period, the 10 p.m. restriction period saw increases of 3% and 5% in the number of sales transactions and sales amounts, respectively; the 11 p.m. restriction period saw increases of 14% and 18%; the midnight restriction period saw sharp increases of 32% and 42%; and after the full lifting of operating hour restrictions, increases of 44% and 60% were observed.

Analyzing this data by 232 administrative neighborhoods within Seoul, the neighborhood with the highest growth rate in the number of sales transactions was Itaewon-dong in Yongsan-gu, reaching 198%. This was followed by Yongsan-dong in Yongsan-gu (100%), Pildong in Jung-gu (96%), Sageun-dong in Seongdong-gu (89%), and Anam-dong in Seongbuk-gu (86%). Furthermore, analyzing the number of sales transactions in Itaewon-dong during the full lifting period by age group showed that people in their 20s accounted for 61% and those in their 30s for 27%, meaning the 20s and 30s age groups made up 88% of total sales transactions.

In particular, with the full lifting of social distancing and the arrival of the new academic semester, consumption in university areas is also rapidly increasing. Sales data by region during the new semester and the period when operating hours were restricted until 11 p.m. (March 5 ? April 1) showed that compared to the period when operating hours were restricted until 9 p.m., Anam-dong in Seongbuk-gu (Korea University) increased by 48%, Pildong in Jung-gu (Dongguk University) by 42%, Sageun-dong in Seongdong-gu (Hanyang University) by 44%, Heukseok-dong in Dongjak-gu (Chung-Ang University) by 41%, Hoegi-dong in Dongdaemun-gu (Kyung Hee University) by 38%, and Hwayang-dong in Gwangjin-gu (Konkuk University) by 32%, all showing sales transaction growth rates above 30%.

A KB Kookmin Card official stated, "If local governments nationwide utilize the Dataroot service, which was made freely available on the 10th, they will be able to understand the sales trends of commercial districts in their respective regions."

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