SEOUL: South Korean households’ overseas spending rose 5.5 percent in the third quarter from a year earlier on increased outbound travel to foreign countries, the central bank said Saturday.
South Korean households spent $6.95 billion overseas in the July-September period, compared with 6.59 billion won in the same period last year, the Bank of Korea said. The data included expenditures South Koreans spent on accommodations and food during their travels or business trips to foreign countries. The number of outbound travelers came to 7.01 million in the July-September period, compared with 6.05 million from the same period last year, according to the Korea Tourism Organization. On Friday, the BOK said an increase in outbound travel deepened the travel account deficit to $1.31 billion in September from a deficit of $1.09 billion a year earlier. The travel account deficit came to a record high of $12.25 billion in the first nine months of this year.
