South Korea: items purchased in bulk after coronavirus outbreak by age 2020

According to a survey by Rakuten Insight on panic buying due to the coronavirus outbreak in South Korea in 2020, the top three types of items purchased by panic buyers across all age groups were dry food items such as rice and noodles, frozen foods, and medical supplies such as disinfectants. Of the almost ten thousand Koreans surveyed, only 15.4 percent took part in panic buying.

Leading goods purchased for stockpiling due to coronavirus (COVID-19) in South Korea in 2020, by age

Characteristic	16 to 24 years old	25 to 34 years old	35 to 44 years old	45 to 54 years old	55 years and older
Dry food items (rice, noodles, pasta, flour, etc)	41.45%	49.73%	57.67%	50.7%	56.45%
Frozen food items (frozen vegetables, frozen pizza, frozen meat..)	40.13%	42.22%	44.38%	46.05%	37.1%
Canned and preserved goods (canned vegetables, canned soup, pickled vegetables, pasta sauceabout..)	25%	32.92%	40.7%	36.28%	38.71%
Fresh meat and vegetables	19.74%	21.47%	22.49%	20.47%	19.35%
Personal hygiene products (soap, shampoo, hand soap..	24.34%	35.96%	36.81%	30.23%	29.03%
Hygiene paper products (toilet paper, paper towels, tissues, wet wipes..)	28.95%	29.52%	33.74%	36.74%	33.87%
Medical supplies (disinfectant, sanitisers, surgical masks, household medication..)	54.61%	49.73%	49.08%	43.26%	48.39%
Others	3.95%	2.68%	2.25%	3.26%	4.84%

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Release date

May 2020

More information

Region

South Korea

Survey time period

April 9 to 30, 2020

Number of respondents

1,477 respondents

Age group

16 years and older

Special properties

among female and male respondents that engaged in panic buying

Method of interview

Online survey

Supplementary notes

Original question: What items did you stock up on?

The survey was conducted among 793 female and 684 male respondents.

The survey was conducted among
152 respondents aged 16 to 24 years,
559 respondents aged 25 to 34 years,
489 respondents aged 35 to 44 years,
215 respondents aged 45 to 54 years and
62 respondents aged 55 years and older.

Other surveyed countries included China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan.

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