9 out of 10 Small Business Owners Say Sales Declined After Emergency Martial Law

Sogongyeon Releases Urgent Survey Report on Economic Outlook
Conducted with 1,630 Small Business Owners Nationwide

Since the emergency martial law situation on the 3rd, it has been revealed that sales have decreased for 9 out of 10 small business owners.

Provided by the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise Associations

The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (KSMB) released a report on the "Urgent Survey on Small Business Economic Outlook After the Emergency Martial Law Situation" on the 12th. This survey was conducted over three days from the 10th to the 12th, targeting a total of 1,630 general small business owners nationwide engaged in food and lodging, wholesale and retail, and personal services, to examine trends in sales and customer numbers experienced by small business owners.

Regarding changes in business sales from the emergency martial law situation to the time of response, 36.0% reported a "decrease of more than 50%," 25.5% reported a "30-50% decrease," 21.7% reported a "10-30% decrease," and 5.2% reported a "less than 10% decrease." In total, 88.4% of respondents said their sales had decreased.

Among business owners who reported a decrease in sales (1,441 people), the total sales decrease amount was 44.5% for "1 million to 3 million KRW," 29.1% for "3 million to 5 million KRW," and 14.9% for "5 million to 10 million KRW." Respondents who answered "10 million to 20 million KRW" accounted for 6.1%, and those who reported "more than 20 million KRW" reached 5.4%.

Regarding the trend in visiting customers, "a decrease of more than 50%" ranked first at 37.7%, followed by "30-50% decrease" at 25.3%, "10-30% decrease" at 20.2%, and "less than 10% decrease" at 6%.

Regarding the year-end economic outlook, 61.9% responded "very negative," and 28.2% responded "somewhat negative."

Ryu Pil-seon, a specialist at the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, explained, "Due to reservation cancellations and reduced consumption, small business owners are taking a direct hit from the disappearance of year-end demand, and the decline in sales caused by political uncertainty is becoming a reality. To improve the current situation, political efforts to resolve political uncertainty are needed, along with special economic measures to stimulate the domestic economy, such as expanding income deduction rates for consumption at small business establishments and tax relief."