[June 10, KOREA WAVE]In South Korea, a survey has shown that not only household income disparity but also “consumption disparity” has been reduced, which is attracting attention. Before and after the spread of the new coronavirus, low-income households’ consumption of non-essential goods such as clothing and leisure time increased, while high-income households’ consumption decreased.

According to the Bank of Korea’s “Household Distribution Account” statistics, in 2022, the consumption share of the entire household will be 29.5% in the “quintile”, which refers to the top 20% of income earners, and the This was 2.1 times higher than the 13.8% of those in the “lowest 20% of income groups.”

In 2018, before the spread of the new coronavirus infection, the rate was 2.5 times higher than the “1st quintile” (12.5%) compared to the “5th quintile” (31.5%), so this ratio has decreased over the four years and the consumption gap has increased. It can be said that it has shrunk.

In response to these trends, the Bank of Korea said, “The narrowing of the consumption gap between income quintiles is due to the relatively large decline in consumption of non-essential materials by households in the top income brackets since 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic began. However, if the consumption of non-essential materials by households in the top income brackets increases from 2023, when the coronavirus pandemic is over, there is a possibility that consumption disparities between income quintiles will widen again.

Specifically, while the consumption of clothes and shoes by the 1st quintile of households will increase by 129.6 billion won from 6.2098 trillion won in 2018 to 7.1289 trillion won in 2022, the consumption of the 5th quintile will increase by 20% during the same period. It decreased by 1.387 trillion won from 287.1 billion won to 18.9001 trillion won.

In the case of entertainment, sports, and cultural consumption, which represents leisure expenses, the 1st quintile increased by 1.744 trillion won from 7.3056 trillion won to 9.496 trillion won for the first time in 4 years, while the 5th quintile increased by 37.8214 trillion won. It decreased by 2,294.2 billion won from 100 million won to 35,527.2 billion won.

(c)news1/KOREA WAVE/AFPBB News