S. Korea's travel account posts surplus for 3rd consecutive month in May: data
South Korea's travel account posted a surplus for the third consecutive month in May, driven by an increase in foreign visitors, government data showed Sunday, Yonhap reports.
The travel account recorded a surplus of US$220.5 million in May, compared with a deficit of $820.2 million a year earlier, according to data from the Korea Tourism Organization.
It marked the third consecutive monthly surplus since March, when the account recorded a surplus of $263.8 million, snapping a 72-month streak of deficits that began in March 2020.
Travel income totaled $2.58 billion in May, exceeding travel spending of $2.36 billion.
On average, each foreign visitor spent $1,324 in South Korea, while each South Korean traveler spent $1,007 overseas.
Separate government data showed that 1.95 million foreign visitors arrived in South Korea in May, up 19.4 percent from a year earlier, while the number of South Koreans traveling abroad fell 2.1 percent from a year earlier to 2.34 million.
"Foreign visitor numbers have risen sharply in recent months, driven by the growing popularity of the Korean Wave and the weakening won," said Kim Nam-jo, a professor of tourism at Hanyang University. "At the same time, higher airfares stemming from the Middle East conflict have discouraged South Koreans from traveling abroad."
Earlier, it was reported South Korea and global tech firms agree on $950bn cooperation projects.