South Korea

In 2024, maintaining the negative trend seen in 2023, other pet food is set to see declines in both retail volume and current value terms in South Korea. During the pandemic, there was a notable increase in the population of other pets; however, in…

Although expected to see another year of retail current value decline in 2023, chocolate-based flavoured powder drinks continues to dominate other hot drinks. These are seasonal beverages, and as a product with limited diversification in taste,…

Overall sales of other dairy products are set to continue to decline in both retail volume and current value terms in 2023. Amongst the various categories within dairy products and alternatives, other dairy was the least affected by the pandemic’s…

Oral care saw even stronger current value growth in South Korea in 2023 than in the previous few years. Consumer awareness of oral hygiene continues to grow, contributing to the healthy growth of the category in this year. Most categories within oral…

While overall smoking prevalence among the adult population continues to slowly decline in South Korea, demand for NRT smoking cessation aids is further falling, in line with pre-pandemic trends. NRT smoking cessation aids lost consumers’ interest…

In the face of persistent declines in the birth rate, companies within nappies/diapers/pants in South Korea are confronted with unique challenges. To counteract these demographic hurdles, businesses are strategically leveraging the premiumisation…

In 2023, the government reformed its electric vehicles subsidy plan, considering factors like price, vehicle performance, warranty infrastructure and battery energy. This is set to boost the electric vehicle market, especially favouring local brands.…

Retail volume sales of smartphones declined in 2022, and this is set to continue in 2023. In 2021, sales of smartphones saw a dynamic volume increase, partly due to a rebound from the 2020 fall in sales, when COVID-19 disrupted the production and…

South Korea experienced a 3.7% inflation rate in September 2023, the highest in five months since April. This increase follows a peak inflation rate of 6.3% in July 2022, which then gradually decreased to 2.3% by July 2023. As the cost of living…

Menswear continues to post healthy current value sales growth, as South Korea fully entered an endemic era from May 2023. Followed by the lifting of social distancing measures in 2022, the South Korea government lifted the mask mandate in April 2023…

While overall volume sales in menstrual care in South Korea may have shown a slight dip in 2023, a dynamic transformation is quietly unfolding. Closer examination reveals a notable surge in the demand for alternative products such as tampons,…

Men’s grooming maintained solid current value growth in South Korea in 2023. However, sales of premium men’s deodorants and premium men’s hair care products continued to be negligible, primarily because demand remains within the mass segment in these…

Total meals and soups packaging volumes continued to see a dramatic rise in 2023. Flexible plastic was the leading pack type in meals and soups packaging in South Korea in 2023, used across most categories, as this offers functionality, convenience,…

Category players are customising their products to cater for various formats demanded by consumers sensitive to new lifestyle trends, such as South Korea's millennials and Generation Z, to maximise convenience. For instance, one of the habits among…

Although growth slowed from the previous year, mass beauty and personal care maintained solid current value growth in South Korea in 2023. Mass colour cosmetics and general purpose body care were amongst the categories that saw healthy growth. Mass…

Retail value sales of luxury goods in South Korea rose by 18% in 2023 in current terms, to stand at KRW50.7 trillion. A combination of consumer indulgence, the release of pent-up demand, and the resumption of key activities, including travelling,…

As in previous years, an increasing number of hotels new to South Korea are emerging. Among them, some are international brands, some are the expansion of established brands, while others are domestic names.

In alignment with the trends observed in 2022, the majority of limited-service restaurants (LSRs) witnessed a surge in menu prices during 2023, which was attributed to the repercussions of escalating raw materials costs and labour expenses. In 2023,…

Laundry care witnessed a stronger performance in retail volume and current value growth in 2023. Many products experienced price increases due to inflation, whilst the heightened levels of hygiene post-pandemic further accelerated the release of…

Demand for large cooking appliances continues to experience decline in 2023, resulting from economic instability and a real estate slowdown that has persisted from the previous year. Local consumers are choosing to continue using their existing large…