Seoul: More than 10 million air passengers traveled on routes between South Korea and Japan in the January-May period, despite the strengthening yen, the transport ministry said Sunday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, a record 11.25 million passengers flew between South Korea and Japan during the first five months of the year, as reported by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in a press release. This figure marks a 10.7 percent increase from the 10.16 million recorded during the same period last year. Furthermore, it represents a 19.8 percent rise from the 9.39 million passengers in the first five months of 2019, a year before the COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted the airline industry.
Industry officials have attributed this surge to years of a weak yen and the expansion of budget carrier flights to Japan, which have helped stimulate pent-up travel demand in recent years. They anticipate demand to continue rising in the second half of the year, with the number of air traffic between the two countries likely to exceed last year's total of 25.14 million.
Despite the yen's appreciation to an average of 999.96 won in April from 927.97 won in January, the Japanese currency turned lower last month to 962.28 won, according to Bank of Korea data. In addition to the recent fluctuations in the yen, special immigration lanes designated for citizens of each country, set up at airports in South Korea and Japan in June to mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic normalization, are expected to further boost travel demand between the two neighbors, according to industry officials.