Korea posted the first surplus in its medical travel account in 2011 thanks to increased spending by overseas travelers seeking healthcare and medical services in the country, the central bank said Tuesday.
According to the Bank of Korea (BOK), Korea's income from medical tourism stood at $116 million in 2011, the highest since data started being kept in 2006.
The income outpaced local residents' overseas spending on medical travel in the same year for the first time, which amounted to $109 million.
"With South Korea making strides in medical technology, the number of foreign travelers visiting here for medical services is increasing," said an official at the BOK.
"Chinese and Japanese tourists seeking to get plastic surgery and other medical services are presumed to number high."
Korea's medical travel income came in at $59 million in 2006 but increased steadily on the back of the advancement of the medical technology and regional governments' efforts to attract overseas patients.
The income gained steadily from $68 million in 2007 to $90 million in 2010.
SKorean residents' overseas expenditures on health-related services reached a peak in 2007 at $137 million and then fell to $96 million in 2009 before rebounding to $109 million in 2010. (Yonhap)