More than 10 mln S. Koreans swipe credit cards overseas

More than 10 million South Koreans swiped their credit cards in foreign countries in 2016 on a sharp rise in overseas travelers, a report showed Monday.

A total of 10.79 million people made overseas purchases worth 16.35 trillion won through credit cards in 2016, up from 9.19 million a year ago, according to the report by Rep. Park Kwang-on from the ruling Democratic Party.
 

The number of overseas credit card users has been on a steady rise for years: 5.55 million in 2012, 6.36 million in 2013 and 7.45 million in 2014.

The increases came as 22.38 million South Korean passport holders went abroad last year, up sharply from 13.73 million tallied in 2012, the report said. (Yonhap)