Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young speaks during a press conference at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
When President Lee Jae Myung took office last year, his administration's goal for K-culture exports by 2030 was set at $35 billion. On Thursday, the government updated the target at a much higher level: $110 billion.
The new export target came up as the government redefined the scope of K-culture and recalculated its market size.
Under the new definition, K-culture now includes tourism, K-food, K-beauty and K-fashion.
“Inbound foreign tourism is a natural result and extra benefit of K-culture, because visitors come to Korea after falling in love with its cultural charms,” Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young said during a press conference in Seoul, Thursday. "We also included global demand for K-food, K-beauty and K-fashion, as these lifestyle choices are driven by overseas consumers' attraction to Korean culture."
The minister also said: "At a time when many traditional sectors that have driven the Korean economy are facing challenges, an upgraded statistical figure proves that the K-culture sector is indeed another engine that can lead our future. We believe this clearer picture will help encourage heavier investment into the industry."
By applying redefined metrics, the ministry recalculated the economic indicators and found that the tentative K-culture market size for 2025 already stood at 274 trillion won ($182 billion), close to the goal of 300 trillion won which the Lee administration initially set out to achieve by 2030 when the president took office last year.
The recalculation showed, according to the minister, K-culture exports already hit a tentative $71.8 billion, making it the nation's third-largest export sector behind semiconductors ($173.4 billion) and automobiles ($72 billion). This was the baseline from which the new export target of $110 billion was drawn.
Chae explained that the decision to scale up this target stemmed from limitations in the older statistical model, which focused too narrowly on cultural creation, content and traditional arts while leaving out critical brand-driven economic sectors.
Culture Minister Chae Hwi-young speaks during a press conference at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
Source: Korea Times News
