A restaurant in the Shinchon district in western Seoul is closed on Aug. 20, 2021. A notice put on the window says the store will reopen after the end of the ongoing Level 4 social distancing restrictions. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — More than two thirds of owner-operated businesses are considering closing down shop as the fourth wave of the pandemic and strict social distancing measures continue to drag on, a leading private think tank said Wednesday.
The Korea Economic Research Institute conducted a survey of 500 owner-operated businesses, 39.4 percent of whom were considering shutting down their business.
As for the reason, 94.6 percent of picked management difficulties. Put more specifically, 45 percent blamed plunging sales, followed by fixed costs (26.2 percent), and other financial difficulties including paying back loans (22 percent).
One third of all owner-operated businesses considering shutting down said they would close down their business in less than three months if the current situation continues.
Including those thinking of shutting down in three to six months (32 percent) or six to 12 months (26.4 percent), almost 9 in 10 owner-operated businesses were thinking of closing down within the next 12 months.
Compared to the first half of this year, 9 in 10 owner-operated businesses have seen sales plunge following the onset of the fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with revenue losses averaging 26.4 percent.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
