By Choi Kyong-ae
Viagra, a prescription drug for erectile dysfunction, topped the list of counterfeit goods in terms of value over the past three years, the Korea Customs Service (KCS) said Thursday.
"Counterfeit erectile dysfunction tablets such as Viagra, Cialis and Levitra continued to flow into Korea from China from 2013 to 2015," a customs office said in a statement. "Such fraudulent drugs could pose a severe threat to personal and community health and safety."
The total value of 828 counterfeit products which infringed on intellectual property rights for the three-year period reached 1.557 trillion won ($12.9 billion), the statement said.
Viagra topped the list at a value of 207.6 billion won, followed by Rolex watches at 162.9 billion won, Louis Vuitton bags at 144.5 billion won and Cialis at 108.4 billion won, it said.
In its preemptive efforts to keep counterfeit products from circulating in the market, the KCS will partner with online open markets such as Gmarket, 11st and Coupang and Internet portals such as Naver and Kakao to closely monitor any illegal online transactions.
By volume rather than value, smartphone chargers, cases and earphones for Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S series and tablets topped the number of counterfeit products caught in the three-year period. Forged Samsung goods were discovered 63 times by the customs office, followed by Louis Vuitton bags at 49 times and Chanel, 40 times, it said.
In a separate statement the KCS said the value of imported cigarettes more than doubled to $34.57 million in 2015 from $15.9 million a year earlier. Korea imported cigarettes mainly from Germany, Poland, Malaysia and Singapore last year.
As the government increased cigarette prices from 2,500 won to 4,500 won per pack in late 2014, smokers preferred low-priced, smaller-sized imported cigarettes priced at around 2,500 won, the KCS said in another statement.
When it comes to e-cigarettes, Korea's imports climbed 33 percent year-on-year to $13.53 million last year from $10.14 million a year earlier. Koreans bought e-cigarettes mainly from the U.S. and China last year, the statement said.
Viagra, a prescription drug for erectile dysfunction, topped the list of counterfeit goods in terms of value over the past three years, the Korea Customs Service (KCS) said Thursday.
"Counterfeit erectile dysfunction tablets such as Viagra, Cialis and Levitra continued to flow into Korea from China from 2013 to 2015," a customs office said in a statement. "Such fraudulent drugs could pose a severe threat to personal and community health and safety."
The total value of 828 counterfeit products which infringed on intellectual property rights for the three-year period reached 1.557 trillion won ($12.9 billion), the statement said.
Viagra topped the list at a value of 207.6 billion won, followed by Rolex watches at 162.9 billion won, Louis Vuitton bags at 144.5 billion won and Cialis at 108.4 billion won, it said.
In its preemptive efforts to keep counterfeit products from circulating in the market, the KCS will partner with online open markets such as Gmarket, 11st and Coupang and Internet portals such as Naver and Kakao to closely monitor any illegal online transactions.
By volume rather than value, smartphone chargers, cases and earphones for Samsung Electronics' Galaxy S series and tablets topped the number of counterfeit products caught in the three-year period. Forged Samsung goods were discovered 63 times by the customs office, followed by Louis Vuitton bags at 49 times and Chanel, 40 times, it said.
In a separate statement the KCS said the value of imported cigarettes more than doubled to $34.57 million in 2015 from $15.9 million a year earlier. Korea imported cigarettes mainly from Germany, Poland, Malaysia and Singapore last year.
As the government increased cigarette prices from 2,500 won to 4,500 won per pack in late 2014, smokers preferred low-priced, smaller-sized imported cigarettes priced at around 2,500 won, the KCS said in another statement.
When it comes to e-cigarettes, Korea's imports climbed 33 percent year-on-year to $13.53 million last year from $10.14 million a year earlier. Koreans bought e-cigarettes mainly from the U.S. and China last year, the statement said.
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