Since mid-August, in order to curb the spread of a new wave of COVID-19 epidemic, South Korea has implemented stricter epidemic prevention measures, which has dealt a heavy blow to the retail and catering industries. Many small enterprises have gone bankrupt.
It is reported that in mid-August, the epidemic in South Korea came back, and a new wave of epidemic spread from the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area. Subsequently, the number of newly confirmed cases in Korea has remained at three digits every day.
on September 9th, 155 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed, with a total of 21,743 confirmed cases. With the rebound of the epidemic, the South Korean government announced stricter epidemic prevention measures, which severely hit the retail and catering industries and led to the bankruptcy of small enterprises. Relevant statistics show that in the first half of this year, the number of self-employed small enterprises in Korea decreased by 1.4 million, and the number of small enterprises as of June was 5.47 million.
? In February this year, at the beginning of the first wave of epidemic, South Korea kept its economy running while fighting the COVID-19 epidemic. The two-pronged strategy seemed to be very effective. In the face of the second wave of epidemic, the previously effective strategy is now in jeopardy.
? Recently, the Financial and Monetary Committee of the Bank of Korea (the central bank) said that it would reduce its economic growth forecast this year from -1.2% to -1.3%.
? According to the data of the Bank of Korea, in the first two quarters of 2121, South Korea's GDP decreased by 1.4% and 3.3% respectively, and the decline in GDP in the second quarter was the lowest level in a single quarter since the Asian financial crisis (1998). Negative growth in both quarters means that the Korean economy has fallen into a technical recession.
in terms of specific economic sectors, in the service sector, due to the downturn in wholesale and retail, accommodation and catering, and transportation, the output value of South Korea's service industry shrank by 1.1% in the second quarter; In the second quarter, the growth rate of South Korea's manufacturing industry decreased by more than 9%, the lowest level since the negative growth of 11.4% in the second quarter of 1963. In terms of foreign trade, South Korea's imports decreased by 7.4% in the second quarter, and its exports dropped by as much as 16.6%, the lowest level in the past 57 years. According to official data released by South Korea, in the first 21 days of August, South Korea's exports decreased by 7% year-on-year to US$ 23 billion, which was significantly narrower than before.
? According to the Financial and Monetary Committee of the Bank of Korea, South Korea's economy continues to be sluggish. Although the decline in exports has decreased, the domestic consumption environment has deteriorated. As the equipment investment is restricted, the construction investment will enter the adjustment stage. In addition, the recent rebound of COVID-19 epidemic in South Korea has seriously affected the economic recovery in South Korea.
? In addition, South Korea's tourism economy is also sluggish. According to the data released by the Korea Tourism Organization (Tourism Board) and the Korea Cultural Tourism Research Institute on the 7th, the tourism revenue of South Korea decreased by 78.6% year-on-year in the second quarter of this year, reaching $1.19 billion, the lowest level since the second quarter of 2113 ($1 billion). In addition, due to the basic suspension of Korean outbound travel, tourism expenditure in the second quarter of this year decreased by 76.3% year-on-year to $1.71 billion, also the lowest level since 2117.