Credit card spending by foreigners skyrockets 10-fold in June from 3 years ago

Credit card spending by foreigners in June surged to nearly 10 times the level from three years earlier amid a sharp increase in overseas visitors, a report showed Tuesday.

According to a report by Korea Credit Data (KCD), the monthly index of revenue from overseas credit cards at local merchants reached 960 in June, sharply up from 100 in January 2023.

The index has steadily increased over the cited period, except for some seasonal declines.

The KCD report also showed that overseas credit card revenues accounted for 1.2 percent of total revenues in June, up from 0.2 percent in January 2023.

Over the past 12 months, 65 percent of revenue from overseas credit cards was generated in Seoul, followed by 11 percent in Gyeonggi and 8 percent in Busan.

By sector, 40 percent of revenues in the service sector came from dermatology clinics, while 14 percent came from plastic surgery clinics.

In the retail sector, 28 percent of revenues came from fashion and clothing shops, while Korean food restaurants accounted for 19 percent of revenues in the food service sector.

On average, foreigners spent 166,000 won ($117) in the service sector, compared with 47,000 won spent by Korean nationals.

They spent an average of 32,000 won in the retail sector and 33,000 won in food and beverages.

Korea attracted 10.7 million foreign visitors in the first half of the year, up 21.3 percent from the same period in 2025.

Yonhap