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Small merchants suffer amid political turmoil

Published: 15 Dec. 2024, 16:32 Updated: 15 Dec. 2024, 18:55

This file photo taken on Nov. 20, 2024, shows a supermarket in Seoul. [NEWS1]

Nearly 9 out of 10 small merchants in South Korea saw a decrease in their sales following the botched martial law declaration by President Yoon Suk Yeol earlier this month, a survey showed Sunday, amid growing concerns over the negative impact of the ongoing political turmoil on the domestic economy.

In a three-day survey on 1,630 mom-and-pop merchants across the nation from Tuesday, 88.4 percent said their sales dropped after the martial law declaration on Dec. 3, according to the Korean Federation of Micro Enterprises.

Small merchants have shown concerns the domestic economy will get worse as the political turmoil over the incident continues with the National Assembly having passed a motion to impeach Yoon.

The country's retail sales index decreased 1.9 percent on-year to 100.6 points in the third quarter, extending its losing streak to the longest-ever of 10 consecutive quarters, according to Statistics Korea.

The weak Korean won is also expected to increase the financial burden on companies.

"We expect to see the aftermath of the recent weakening of the Korean won to show a month after at the soonest and three months after at the latest," an official at a supermarket chain said on the condition of anonymity, noting the prices of goods would rise about 3-5 percent on average.

The Korean won has been under downward pressure due to significant market uncertainties triggered by the botched martial law declaration, even dipping below the 1,440-won level in offshore trading at one point, marking its lowest in more than two years.

The Korean won closed at 1,433 won against the dollar this week.

Yonhap