Home / Features / Archive by category Consumer Insights & Behavior (Page 4)

Archive by category Consumer Insights & Behavior

Jeju’s Reusable Container Program Surges Past 2,000 Orders, Expands Islandwide Push Against Plastic

JEJU, Oct. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — Jeju Province’s pilot program encouraging food delivery in reusable containers has surpassed 2,000 orders in less than two months, signaling strong public support for the island’s ambitious campaign to curb single-use plastics. Launched on Aug. 13 in Jeju City’s Yeon-dong and Nohyeong-dong districts, the “Yonggi-inneun Jumun” (“Courageous Order”) service allows [...]

Survey Finds Fewer Than Half of South Koreans Now See Unification as Necessary

SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — Fewer than half of South Koreans believe unification with the North is necessary, though support has edged higher compared with a year ago, a new survey shows. The 2025 Unification Awareness Survey, conducted by Seoul National University’s Institute for Peace and Unification Studies and Gallup Korea, found that 41.1 [...]

Koreans Push for EU-Style Punitive Damages as Trust in Corporate Data Security Erodes

SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — In the wake of a string of high-profile data leaks, an overwhelming majority of South Koreans say they view such incidents as a serious threat and support adopting punitive damages similar to those in Europe and other advanced economies, a new poll shows. According to a Realmeter survey of 500 [...]

McDonald’s Korea Sells 30 Million Burgers from Local Ingredient Project

SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Korea Bizwire) — McDonald’s Korea said Tuesday that sales of its regionally inspired menu items, launched under the “Taste of Korea” initiative, have topped 30 million units. The project, introduced to highlight premium domestic ingredients, aims to deliver fresh, distinctive flavors to customers while securing stable sales channels for local farms. Over [...]

Contactless Payments Gain Ground as Koreans Shift Away From Traditional Methods

SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — The use of payment services employing passwords, biometric data and other authentication methods rose more than 11 percent in the first half, reflecting the growing trend of contactless commerce, central bank data showed Monday. The daily average value of simple payment transactions reached 1.046 trillion won (US$745.77 million) in [...]

Kakao’s Big KakaoTalk Overhaul Triggers User Backlash, Stock Selloff

SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Kakao Corp.’s biggest revamp of its flagship KakaoTalk messenger in 15 years has sparked a wave of criticism from users, rattling confidence in the app that dominates South Korea’s mobile communications. The update, rolled out last week, is part of Kakao’s push to reposition KakaoTalk from a basic messenger [...]

Koreans Embrace Greener Traditions to Cut Holiday Waste

SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — As South Korea prepares for the Chuseok harvest holiday, when household waste typically spikes, local governments and businesses are stepping up efforts to promote greener practices — from reusable wrapping to bans on artificial flowers at cemeteries. Officials in North Chungcheong Province estimate that nearly 20,000 tons of waste [...]

Korean Midlife Workers Turn to Technical Licenses for Second Careers

SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — For middle-aged and older South Koreans seeking a second career, technical licenses are proving to be a reliable path into steady employment and higher wages. A government survey released Sunday by the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training found that [...]

Shinhan Card Says Consumer Coupons Boosted Sales at Small Businesses

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — A government-backed consumer coupon program has driven a notable increase in sales at South Korea’s smallest merchants while also lifting household spending among shop owners, Shinhan Card said Thursday. An analysis by the company’s Big Data Research Center found that after the rollout of the “livelihood recovery consumer coupons,” [...]

Retail Investors in Their 40s and 50s Drive Demand for Treasury Bonds as Retirement Hedge

SEOUL, Sept. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — A growing number of South Koreans in their 40s and 50s are turning to individual Treasury bonds as a preferred tool for retirement planning, according to new data from Mirae Asset Securities, the sole distributor of the instruments. Figures show that 39.3 percent of investors in such bonds over [...]