South Korean retail sales surged 6 per cent in January, largely underpinned by strong online growth. 

Online’s performance was buoyed by consumers buying daily essentials, along with gift shopping ahead of Lunar New Year. 

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, combined sales of 26 major offline and online retailers reached US$11.2 billion in January. 

Online sales soared 22.6 per cent, with demand for food surging 49 per cent.

The migration of office workers to working from home saw purchases of home appliances and electronics rise 43.3 per cent, and of furniture by 22.1 per cent.

Sales from offline stores slid 5.8 per cent largely due to social-distancing measures to combat the spread of Covid-19. The only offline sector to improve was convenience stores, with sales up by 2.4 per cent. 

Meanwhile, there was a different story in Japan: retail sales fell 2.4 per cent in January according to government data.