Korea's imports of leisure products jumped nearly 20 percent on-year during the first seven months of 2012 thanks to increasing interest in outdoor activities, customs data showed Monday.
South Korea imported $279.39 million worth of leisure products during the January-July period, up 19.7 percent from $233.36 million a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea Customs Service.
The data showed that camping equipment imports including tents and sleeping bags surged 27.8 percent on-year to $56.36 million, leading the overall increase.
Imports of swimming suits and other summer-related equipment rose 18.3 percent to $176.46 million, while those of equipment needed for fishing and other water sports such as scuba diving also grew 16.3 percent to $46.56 million, according to the data.
Most of the imported leisure products came from China. South Korea notably bought more than 70 percent of its camping equipment from China due to its relatively cheap prices, the agency said.
Imports of leisure products have been on a steady increase over the past few years due to higher interest in outdoor activities.
South Korea imported $314.53 million worth of leisure products in 2011, up 24.2 percent from a year earlier, the agency said. Last year's figure compares with the $216.80 million tallied in 2008. (Yonhap)