Overseas Spending Hits Record High

Despite the sluggish economy caused by declining consumption as people refrained from spending after the April 16 ferry disaster, overseas spending by Korean tourists hit a record high in the second quarter.

Koreans spent US$5.02 billion on overseas travel in the three-month period, up 20 percent from a year earlier and up 11 percent from the previous record of $4.1 billion set in the first quarter of this year.

In particular, overseas spending by Korean tourists was $1.7 billion in June alone, a new monthly record.

The number of Koreans traveling overseas has already reached 7.6 million in the first half of this year, more than half of last year’s total of 14.84 million.