By Jane Han
Staff Reporter
Overriding the traditional conception that Japan is costlier than Korea, ``cheap Tokyo, pricey Seoul'' has been a new impression sneaking into consumer mentality, but experts say good bargains are still strong in the local market.
``Plenty of things are cheaper here than in Japan,'' Samsung Economic Research Institute Senior Researcher Koo Bon-kwan said. ``There's a widespread idea that, suddenly, everything is expensive in Korea because of biased comparisons.''
He said consumers naturally absorb the misunderstanding because examples of cheaper Japanese goods were recently emphasized in the media more often, while eliminating less expensive equivalents here.
Imported apparel and restaurant brands, including Louis Vuitton, Estee Lauder, T.G.I. Fridays and McDonalds, are notably pricier in Seoul because of high tariffs and fewer distribution channels, but others, especially those involving service, go the other way, said a researcher of the Korea International Trade Organization (KITA).
``When it comes to involving infrastructure and labor, the goods and services cost goes upwards in Japan because their national per capita income is twice that of Koreans,'' he said. ``For example, getting a haircut will cost you more there.''
The average cost of one hour for a private English tutor is also costlier in Tokyo at about 7,000 yen per hour (54,000 won), while local teachers charge about 40,000 won.
Some other comparatively cheaper items here include movie tickets (Tokyo 15,500 won, Seoul 8,000 won), taxi base fare (Tokyo 5,320 won, Seoul 1,900 won) and Beer (Tokyo 1,700 won, Seoul 1,000 won).
When comparing a wide range of goods and services, Koo says there is now better balance in pricing between the two countries than before when everything in Japan was significantly more expensive.
He said the turnaround came because Japan's overall commodity price remained almost the same for the past 15 years, while Korea's sharply rose over the past decade, which led to today's balance.
``The weak yen and strong won also affected the situation as more local travelers flew to Japan to spend,'' said Koo. ``When they come back, they tend to elaborate on how Japan is much cheaper _ leaving out what has a higher price tag there.''
And he says the word of mouth rumor also causes the general consumer mentality to shift that way.
Mercer Human Resource Consulting's annual survey put Tokyo as the world's most expensive city to live in in 2005 with Seoul at 5th place, but Seoul snatched 2nd in 2006, beating out Tokyo at 3rd. Most recently, Seoul, again, ranked higher at 3rd place in 2007 with its neighbor at 4th.
``Japan's economy is beginning to pick up again, so things might change over time,'' said Koo. But he added that the ongoing weak yen and strong won will keep traveler's buying happily in Tokyo because they can bring back more for what they spend.