Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced today that Korea’s retail industry grew 6.7 percent year-on-year for the month of September 2024, with offline and online sales each shrinking 0.9 percent and expanding 15.7 percent, respectively.

MOTIE's monthly retail sales figures are based on surveys of 23 major retailers. Thirteen of them are brick-and-mortar retailers: three department store chains, three hypermarket chains, three convenience store chains, and four super supermarket (SSMs) operators. The remaining 10 are online retailers.

By offline retail channel, hypermarket sales dropped 6.5 percent overall as food products (down 9.1 percent) suffered, but the late heat wave drove sales of home appliances (up 17.9 percent).

Department store sales rose 0.3 percent in spite of weak demand for food products (down 5.9 percent) and women’s suits (down 9.0 percent), as household goods (up 14.4 percent) and foreign designer labels (up 3.7 percent) advanced.

Convenience store sales climbed 2.5 percent as the late heat wave fueled demand for processed food products (up 3.6 percent) like ice cream and functional beverages. Tobacco sales also increased 2.4 percent.

SSM operators contracted 2.7 percent as all categories minus fresh food products (up 4.9 percent) declined.

Online retail sales soared 15.7 percent as the late heat wave boosted sales of home appliances and electronics (up 18.1 percent), as well as service/other (up 52.9 percent) such as e-coupons, travel packages, and food deliveries.

Demand for food products (up 14.7 percent), living furniture (up 10.3 percent), and cosmetics (up 11.4 percent) showed steady growth, whereas fashion/clothing (down 16.0 percent) and sports (down 11.4 percent) continued to slide.