[Yakson House] Hot issue/ Korean cosmetics capture overseas markets

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Not only in Myeong-dong, the famous shopping district in downtown Seoul, but also in duty free shops around the globe, tourists and beauty fans are flocking to makeup shops to buy Korean cosmetics. The advertisements decorating these shops feature famous Korean actresses and K-pop singers,
looking into the camera’s eye to attract customers.

Reflecting such popularity, the export volume of Korean cosmetics recently outperformed imports for the first time. The Korea Customs Service (KCS) announced earlier this month that the export volume of Korean cosmetics recorded USD 1.45 billion last year, exceeding imports of USD 0.99 billion.

Photo by stux

According to the central customs authority, this is
 the first time cosmetic exports exceeded USD 1 billion. Ten years ago, the export volume of cosmetics and related makeup remained at USD 0.17 billion, while imports were at USD 0.42 billion. Since then, however, export volumes have gradually increased, reaching USD 0.76 billion in 2010 and 0.8 billion in 2012. The number of export destination nations last year was 129,
higher than the 95 countries from which Korea imported makeup.





Original source: http://theinsidekorea.com/2014/05/korean-cosmetics-capture-overseas-markets/