BTS concerts in Korea fuel $38 mil. spending surge by overseas fans

BTS performs during its "ARIRANG" world tour concert at Goyang Stadium in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, Saturday. Yonhap

A series of BTS concerts in Korea set off a surge in spending by foreign fans, with credit card purchases topping 55.5 billion won ($37.6 million) and reshaping local commerce around the venue, according to data released Tuesday.

Hana Card said its analysis of foreign card transactions tied to three recent BTS performances at Goyang Stadium found that roughly 30,000 overseas visitors made purchases during the concert period.

The card company said that based on a conservative estimate of 30,000 visitors, total spending across categories, including airfare, lodging, dining and retail, reached more than 55.5 billion won. The figure could climb to 74 billion won with 40,000 visitors and 92.6 billion won with 50,000, approaching 100 billion won.

Those fans bought an average of 2.1 tickets per person, the company said, reflecting a trend of repeat attendance and group purchases among devoted followers.

Japanese fans accounted for 32 percent of all foreign buyers, followed by Taiwan at 12 percent, the Philippines at 7 percent, Hong Kong at 5 percent and the United States at 5 percent, with Asian visitors making up more than 75 percent of the total.

The concerts drove a sharp spike in local spending.

During the event week from April 6 to April 12, foreign card transactions in the Goyang Stadium area jumped 807 percent compared with the previous week, while total spending rose 231 percent.

The number of cards used surged 1,252 percent, with the biggest increases seen at convenience stores, up 1,069 percent, and cafes, up 1,109 percent. Restaurant spending rose 600 percent and shopping 629 percent, the company said.

Hana Card said the pattern shows how short bursts of concentrated spending around concert venues can directly benefit small businesses and nearby retailers.

Spending patterns among concertgoers also differed from those of typical tourists. Per-person expenditures were higher for lodging, at 480,000 won, and airfare, at 616,000 won, while shopping outlays, at 314,000 won, were lower than those of average visitors. Spending at convenience stores and cafes exceeded that of general tourists, pointing to consumption concentrated around the venue.

Hana Card said large-scale K-pop concerts generate economic effects that extend far beyond ticket sales and can draw substantial foreign spending into Korea over a short period.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.