"New Year's Wish? Winning First Prize in Lotto" Have You Endured Well This Year? [Reporter Han Goes]

This Year’s COVID-19 Spread... Life Gets Tougher for the Common People
Job Market Freezes and Job Seekers Sigh
Lottery Sales Reach Record High

Inside a convenience store in Seoul, lottery tickets are displayed. Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr.

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] "I really hope I win sincerely.", "This year seems especially harder. It's depressing."

The spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), which began earlier this year, is not subsiding; rather, the number of new confirmed cases continues to exceed 1,000 daily. Sighs from self-employed people, small business owners, the unemployed, and those in their 20s and 30s who need to find jobs are still increasing.

Due to the increasingly harsh life, the lottery (Lotto), which was purchased weekly with dreams of a sudden fortune, has now taken on a different character?an earnest hope to actually win.

People who buy Lotto each have their own reasons, often mixed with sighs about personal debt repayment. Kim, a man in his 30s whom we met at a Lotto sales store in a busy area of Seoul, said, "My biggest worry is money. I have taken out quite a few loans, so if I win the Lotto, I will solve that first."

Another office worker in his 40s, Park, also confessed, "There are so many places where money needs to go," adding, "Not only personal retirement issues but also my parents' health and my children's tuition fees?there are really many things to solve."

Meanwhile, despairing sighs from job seekers (chwijunsaeng) remain. Choi, a job seeker in his 20s, said, "Next year’s job market might be even tougher than this year," adding, "Even those who already have jobs are struggling this much, so how much harder must it be for job seekers?"

A banner hung at a lottery sales store announcing the emergence of a second prize winner. Photo by Han Seung-gon hsg@asiae.co.kr.

◆ Lotto Sales Increase as Economy Worsens, a 'Recession-Type Product'

As citizens complain, the overall economic situation has worsened due to the COVID-19 crisis, and lottery sales in the first half of this year reached a record high.

Lottery is known as a kind of 'recession-type product' that sells better as the economy worsens. The ongoing economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 crisis has made life difficult, which is why lottery sales have increased, according to some observations.

According to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance’s Lottery Commission (Lotto Commission) in September, lottery sales in the first half of this year amounted to 2.6208 trillion won, an 11.1% increase compared to the same period last year. This is the highest amount since the Lotto Commission began disclosing lottery business performance for the first half of the year in 2005 (1.4164 trillion won). The growth rate is the highest since 2012 (17.7%) for the first half of the year.

By lottery product, Lotto accounted for the largest share at 2.3082 trillion won, followed by printed lottery tickets at 186.3 billion won, combined pension lottery at 85.5 billion won, and electronic lottery at 40.8 billion won.

The area around Myeongdong Street in Jung-gu, Seoul, showing a decrease in foot traffic due to the impact of COVID-19. The photo was taken last October. Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr.

◆ COVID-19 Intensifies... Frozen Employment Market

According to 'Social Trends in Korea 2020' released by Statistics Korea on the 11th, a survey on 'Job and Wage Changes Due to COVID-19' conducted in May showed that 50.3% of the general public received the same wages as before COVID-19.

Responses included 26.7% who said they did not lose their jobs but had reduced wages, 14% who lost their jobs, and 9% who did not lose their jobs but were on unpaid leave. Respondents who were not wage workers answered assuming they were wage workers.

Since February this year, when COVID-19 became full-scale, the labor market has sharply contracted, with a decrease in employed persons and a surge in economically inactive population. The groups most affected by employment reduction were women, those under 20, and temporary workers. The number of unemployment benefit recipients exceeded 600,000 in March and surpassed 700,000 after June.

Employment retention support funds, which are subsidies provided to employers who implement employment retention measures (such as business suspension, leave, unpaid leave) due to business deterioration, were paid to about 390,000 people in July this year. This is a significant increase from 4,000 people in the same month last year.

More than 7 out of 10 job seekers lack confidence in finding employment. According to a survey conducted by the job platform Saramin in August targeting 937 new job seekers about 'Confidence in Employment in the Second Half of the Year,' 71.2% responded that they were 'not confident about getting a job.' The main reason for lack of confidence (multiple responses allowed) was 'a significant decrease in job postings after the COVID-19 crisis (65.7%).'

Lotto sales stand placed next to a lottery ticket sales counter in Seoul. Photo by Han Seung-gon hsg@asiae.co.kr.

People who buy Lotto unanimously wished for the economy to improve next year. Kim, a man in his 30s who visits the Lotto store every Saturday to buy both manual and automatic Lotto tickets, said, "Everyone had a hard time this year because of COVID-19. I hope next year COVID ends and self-employed people can smile a lot."

Another office worker in his 40s, Lee, said, "People like me who have jobs are somehow holding on, but job seekers must be really struggling," adding, "If I meet job seekers, I want to say at least a warm word." Park, a job seeker in his 20s, emphasized, "I hope the job market becomes more active next year. I hope not only me but other job seekers also get employed."