As the daylight hours shorten so are mini-skirt lines among teenage Korean girls, who walk in clusters through the tourist mecca of Myeong-dong on Friday afternoon as Japanese visitors respond differently to the first snow by wrapping up in heavy winter apparel and sneezing "Samui!" (It's cold!).

Seemingly oblivious to cold weather, mini-skirted school girls chatter noisily past the shivering Japanese. The sound of Christmas decorations brought crashing to the ground by strong winds may be filling the air, but it is the sight of mini-skirts that are heating up the cold winter weather. Three out of 10 young women in Seoul's restaurant and shopping center are wearing mini-skirts with hems that stop 10 centimeters or more above their knees.

Fashion critics assign their budding popularity to the new winter trend of adopting a "girlish style". They also suggest the mini-skirts may have a psychological goal: overcoming winter blues and feelings of economic hardship.

Min Byung-hwa, design manager for Koolhaas, said, "The common belief about their being a relationship between the skirt length and the economy seems to be true," adding that, "people tend to go for cute and active styles that take their minds off the faltering economy."

Min continued by saying that, "the 'school girl' look, which cropped up last Fall, has also fueled the popularity for the mini-skirt boom."

Mini-skirts have been a hot item in the fashion industry for some time, but only recently have sales jumped dramatically. Jung Dong-hyuk, director of women's casual wear at Lotte Department Store, said, "According to our research on sales of female brands, the sales of mini-skirts have risen over 30 percent", added that, "mini-skirts must be worn with other items such as boots or pantaloon stockings, so it has the effect of leading sales of other items as well".

Vivien, an employee at a company that sells stockings, announced a 60 percent leap in sales compared to previous years. She said that sales usually drop off after the arrival of winter, but this year's mini-skirt boom has kept sales consistently high for a longer period.

The so-called "mini boom" has also changed the sartorial landscape at university campuses in the capital. Ewha Womans University student Hah suggested this was due to women's catering to men's tastes, as well as a certain act of defiance. "I wear them because men like mini-skirts. Besides, I can stand the cold," she said.

During the brief interview, many more young ladies hurried past in mini-skirts - presumably espousing similar views.

(Kim Miri, miri@chosun.com)