[Edaily Kang Gyeong-rok Travel Reporter] South Korea’s tourism balance of payments, which had been plagued by chronic deficits, is rapidly improving. It has ended a six-year streak of deficits that began after the COVID-19 pandemic and has recorded a surplus for four consecutive months since March. This is the result of a significant increase in the number of foreign visitors to South Korea, coupled with higher spending by these visitors. However, some analysts note that since the balance remained in deficit for the first half of this year overall, it is still too early to interpret the shift to a surplus as a structural change.
According to the Korea Tourism Data Lab of the Korea Tourism Organization on the 10th, the tourism balance posted a surplus of $596.6 million in June. This marks a turnaround from the $846.8 million deficit recorded in the same month last year. It is the second-largest monthly surplus since October 2008.
The tourism balance is calculated by subtracting expenditures from revenues from general travel—excluding study abroad and training programs—within the travel balance of the Bank of Korea’s balance of payments. A surplus occurs when the amount spent by foreigners in Korea exceeds the amount spent by Koreans abroad. The figures for 2025 and 2026 are currently preliminary and may be adjusted during future revisions to the balance of payments.

The tourism balance recorded a deficit for 72 consecutive months from March 2020 through February of this year. This year, it also posted deficits of $1,403.4 million and $1,099.3 million in January and February, respectively.
The trend reversed starting last March. After turning to a surplus of $263.8 million in March, the balance remained in the black for four consecutive months, with surpluses of $159.9 million in April, $220.5 million in May, and $596.6 million in June.
In June, tourism revenue totaled $2.784 billion, while tourism expenditure amounted to $2.1874 billion. With tourism revenue exceeding expenditure by $596.6 million, the tourism balance of payments also recorded a surplus of the same magnitude.
The increase in the number of visitors to Korea supported the growth in tourism revenue. In the first half of the year, the number of foreign visitors to Korea reached 10.71 million, a 21.3% increase compared to the same period last year. In June, 1,993,128 people visited Korea, a 23.1% increase from the same month last year.
The growth in domestic consumption by foreigners outpaced the growth rate of visitor numbers. Foreigner credit card spending in the first half of the year totaled 10.0389 trillion won, a 50.8% increase compared to the same period last year. Card spending in June totaled 2.0544 trillion won, exceeding 2 trillion won for the second consecutive month. However, card spending is not an exact indicator of total tourism consumption by foreign visitors, as the proportion of card usage, payment methods, and consumption patterns vary by nationality. Nevertheless, it can be interpreted as a supplementary indicator showing that domestic consumption is expanding alongside the increase in visitors to Korea, though it should not be overinterpreted.
The slowdown in overseas travel by South Korean nationals also contributed to the improvement in the tourism balance of payments. Factors such as airfare costs and exchange rate pressures affected demand for overseas travel, resulting in a relatively weaker growth trend in tourism spending.

Kim Nam-jo, a professor in the Department of Tourism at Hanyang University, recently analyzed that “the improvement in the tourism balance was driven by the spread of the Korean Wave and an increase in foreign tourists due to the weak won.” He also cited the slowdown in overseas travel by South Koreans, caused by rising airfares and other factors, as a contributing factor.
However, it is too early to interpret the recent surplus as a structural shift. While the tourism balance recorded a surplus of $1.2408 billion from March to June, it had posted a deficit exceeding $2.5 billion in January and February. When the preliminary monthly figures are aggregated, the tourism balance for the first half of the year shows a deficit of approximately $1,261.9 million. On an annual basis, the tourism balance also recorded deficits of $10,382.6 million in 2023, $10,207.2 million in 2024, and $10,760.4 million last year.
Outbound travel demand will be a key factor in the second half of the year. As the summer vacation season and the Chuseok holiday approach, tourism spending could rise again if international flight capacity increases and more domestic travelers go abroad.
The Bank of Korea also recently analyzed that to maximize the growth effects of the tourism industry, it is necessary to increase not only the number of visitors but also the length of stay and daily per-capita spending. Whether the tourism balance of payments remains in surplus even after outbound travel demand increases in the second half of the year is expected to serve as a benchmark for determining whether the recent improvement trend will continue.