Online shopping sales up 10 pct in June on mobile devices, automobiles

South Korea's online shopping sales saw a 10% increase in June compared to the previous year, driven by robust demand for mobile devices and automobiles, according to data released on Monday. The total value of online shopping transactions reached 24.6 trillion won (US$17 billion) in June, up by 2.3 trillion won from the same period last year, as reported by the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

Mobile device sales saw a significant jump, more than doubling to 892.4 billion won, largely attributed to promotional events by Samsung Electronics. Automobile and related product sales also experienced a substantial rise of 56.8%, reaching 1.19 trillion won, driven by strong sales of Tesla electric vehicles. Food product sales, including agricultural and fishery goods, increased by 11% to 4.6 trillion won, while cosmetic product sales rose by 9.9% to 1.26 trillion won.

Purchases made through smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices climbed by 9.8% to 18.9 trillion won, accounting for 76.9% of total sales, a slight decrease from 77.6% a year earlier.