Online shopping jumps 15.8 pct in July as virus-wary shoppers stay home

SEJONG, Sept. 3 (Yonhap) -- Online shopping jumped 15.8 percent from a year earlier in July, data showed Thursday, as the coronavirus pandemic prompted more shoppers to buy goods via e-commerce platforms.

The value of online transactions came to 12.96 trillion won (US$10.9 billion) in the month, up 1.76 trillion won from the same month last year, according to the data from Statistics Korea.

The sharp increase in July was largely attributed to the pandemic that forced citizens to use online shops.

The coronavirus outbreak, with the first case confirmed in South Korea in late January, has forced many South Koreans to stay home and work from home, leading them to resort more to nonstore spending.

Online sales of daily necessities, including sanitizers and detergents, surged 48 percent on-year in July.

Online purchases for offline activities, on the other hand, dropped sharply, with purchases for cultural events and tourism programs plunging 51.6 percent and 67.8 percent on-year, respectively.

Purchases made through smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices surged 21.2 percent on-year to 8.78 trillion won in July, accounting for 67.8 percent of overall online shopping.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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