A shopper browses the shelves at a supermarket in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap By Jun Ji-hye Lee, the mother of a 3-year-old son who lives in Seoul's Jungnang District, recently started working part-time at a restaurant. She had to quit her job during pregnancy due to health issues, but with the recent surge in living costs, she felt that her husband’s salary alone was no longer enough to support the family. After dropping her child off at day care, she goes straight to work, where she stays until 4 p.m. helping the restaurant prepare for opening, and then picks her child up from day care. “Although my part-time job doesn’t pay as much as I used to earn in my full-time job, I need to earn money in any way I can because the costs of living have risen so much,” she said. “I want to have a second child, but given the current financial situation, I feel it is out of reach.” Lee is not the only one feeling the strain on household finances. According to a survey released Thursday by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), seven out of 10 people perceive their financial situation as worse than last year, with rising prices cited as the main reason. In the survey of 1,000 adults nationwide, 71.5 percent of respondents said their household finances had deteriorated compared to last year, while only 28.5 percent said they had improved. The most significant economic challenge reported was the rising costs of living, with 71.9 percent of respondents identifying it as their primary concern. This was followed by a decrease in real income, cited by 11.9 percent, and concerns over job shortages and instability, mentioned by 9.5 percent. Lee Sang-ho, who heads the FKI’s economic and industrial research department, noted that the prolonged economic slowdown and persistent inflation have put a severe strain on household finances. “The government needs to foster a business-friendly environment to drive investment and job creation while prioritizing efforts to stabilize food prices,” he said. Regarding the sectors experiencing the highest price increases, food and dining costs were the most frequently mentioned, with 72 percent highlighting them as the biggest burden. Other notable areas included energy expenses at 11 percent and housing costs at 4.5 percent. Read More Consumer inflation projected to hover around 2%: finance ministry High inflation experiences boost demand for housing: BOK report Lowest income class' food expenses rise 40% over 5 years amid inflation Regarding the outlook for 2026, 64.2 percent expected economic conditions will deteriorate, while the remaining 35.8 percent said things will improve. The most critical measure to control rising prices was stabilizing the costs of essential goods, cited by 58.4 percent, followed by energy price regulation at 13.9 percent. Meanwhile, 9.7 percent favored providing targeted assistance to the socially vulnerable, while 7.9 percent backed reducing taxes on consumer spending.
