Due to seasonal factors such as summer vacation and Chuseok, the number of domestic travelers going abroad increased, leading to a record high in card spending overseas in the third quarter of this year.
On the 29th, when the Gimpo-Haneda flight route resumed operations, passengers were moving to board planes at the international terminal of Gimpo Airport in Gangseo-gu, Seoul. / Photo by Mun Honam munonam@
According to the 'Overseas Card Usage Performance of Residents in the Third Quarter' announced by the Bank of Korea on the 26th, the overseas card (credit + debit) spending by residents in the third quarter amounted to $5.71 billion, a 10.1% increase from the previous quarter ($5.18 billion). This is the highest amount ever recorded since the fourth quarter of last year ($5.185 billion). Compared to the same period last year ($4.79 billion), it increased by 19.1%.
The Bank of Korea explained that although overseas direct purchases through online shopping decreased, the increase was mainly due to the rise in the number of domestic travelers going abroad because of seasonal factors such as summer vacation and Chuseok. Overseas direct purchases via online shopping in the third quarter were $1.41 billion, down 4.4% from the previous quarter ($1.47 billion). On the other hand, the number of people traveling abroad increased. The number of domestic travelers in the third quarter was 7.173 million, an 8.7% increase from the previous quarter.
By card type, spending on credit cards and debit cards increased by 5.6% and 21.4%, respectively, compared to the previous quarter, both showing growth. The usage share by card type was 69% for credit cards and 31% for debit cards.
An Joo-eun, a manager of the Capital Movement Analysis Team at the Bank of Korea's International Department, explained, "The increase in overseas debit card usage was due to some card companies' active marketing efforts, such as discounts on currency exchange fees."
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