(Seoul=Yonhap Infomax) Su In Jeong – Major South Korean retailers saw sales climb nearly 7% in October, driven by robust offline demand during an extended holiday period and delayed Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) spending, with hypermarkets and department stores leading the gains.


[Monthly Year-on-Year Sales Growth Rate by Retail Channel (Unit: %)]
[Source: Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy]


The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 26th that total sales at major retailers rose 6.7% year-on-year in October, with offline sales up 6.6% and online sales up 6.8%.


By segment, offline sales increased at hypermarkets (up 9.3%), department stores (up 12.2%), and convenience stores (up 0.7%), while sales at semi-large supermarkets declined 1.7% compared to the same period last year.


The ministry attributed the strong performance at hypermarkets and department stores to the impact of a string of national holidays—including National Foundation Day, Chuseok, and Hangeul Day—along with pent-up Chuseok demand and aggressive promotional campaigns during the Korea Grand Festival, a nationwide shopping event.


Convenience stores posted growth for the fourth consecutive month, while semi-large supermarkets recorded negative growth for the third straight month since August.


Online sales continued to expand, led by food, services, electronics, and cosmetics.


In terms of sales composition, hypermarkets (up 0.2 percentage points) and department stores (up 0.9 percentage points) increased their share of offline sales, while convenience stores (down 1.0 percentage point) and semi-large supermarkets (down 0.2 percentage points) saw declines. Online channels accounted for 52.0% of total sales, up 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier.


The survey covered 13 major offline retailers and 10 leading online retailers.


sijung@yna.co.kr


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