As much as Chinese consumers have enjoyed South Korea shopping in the past, that situation may change in the wake of a decision by South Korean customs to impose a purchase limit at the country's tax-free outlets, thepaper.cn reported.
On July 11, the Korea Customs Service notified all Korean duty-free operators--including Lotte, Shilla and Shinsegae--to limit the number of purchases made by each customer to 50 cosmetics and/or perfume purchases, and 10 bags and watches per brand, the Korean Herald reported.
Current figures show that in the first quarter of 2016, 70.8 percent of sales at Lotte, South Korea's largest duty-free retail chain, came from Chinese visitors. In July, South Korea received 1.55 million foreign visitors, 758,500 of which were Chinese, accounting for 48.8 percent of the total.
South Korea has seen a huge influx of Chinese tourists, many of who come for "shopping holidays" with the primary aim of stocking up on cosmetics at a cheaper price than they would pay in China.
