Agency report links Korean Wave exports to related industries

Korea Creative Content Agency said it published KOCCA Focus No. 214, a report analyzing how the Korean Wave industry affects related Korean Wave industries and the domestic economy after the framework law for promoting the Korean Wave industry took effect. The agency said the report examined how content exports drive exports in related sectors such as cosmetics, food and tourism, and presented effects on domestic production and employment.

According to the report, the analysis used export data from 2006 to 2024 for six regions, including Greater China, Japan, Southeast Asia, North America and Europe. The report said that when Korean Wave industry exports rise by 1 hundred-million dollars, exports by related Korean Wave industries rise by 2.02 hundred-million dollars. The report described this as an economic effect in which broader consumption of Korean Wave content raises familiarity with Korean culture and connects to consumption and export growth in cosmetics, food and tourism.

The report said games made up 64.3% of Korean Wave industry exports, the largest share in that category. It said music centered on K-pop recorded an average annual growth rate of 29.7%, while comics, supported by webtoon growth, recorded an average annual growth rate of 26.3%. Among related Korean Wave industries, the report said tourism had the largest share, while cosmetics was the fastest-growing item with an average annual growth rate of 21.3%.

According to the report, cosmetics exports expanded from a market centered on Greater China to North America and Europe, showing the spread of the Korean Wave's economic influence across different industries. The report said content exports reached 149 hundred-million dollars in 2025 and ranked 12th among Korea's major export items. It also analyzed that the Korean Wave industry plays an important role beyond content in the growth of related industries such as consumer goods and tourism.

The report estimated that a 1 hundred-million dollar increase in Korean Wave industry exports induces total domestic production of 5.7 hundred-million dollars, or about 7,824 hundred-million won. It said 2,340 hundred-million won, or 1.7 hundred-million dollars, is induced in the content production process, while 5,483 hundred-million won, or 4 hundred-million dollars, is induced in production by related Korean Wave industries. The report put the employment inducement effect at 3,389 people, including 1,251 people in Korean Wave industry production and 2,138 people in related Korean Wave industry production.

Korea Creative Content Agency said the report confirmed that the Korean Wave industry is an economic base contributing not only to the content industry but also to expanded exports in tourism and consumer goods, and that continued policy support is needed to strengthen links between the Korean Wave industry and related industries. The agency's president said, 'This analysis confirms that the ripple effect of the Korean Wave industry, or K-content, is having a positive impact on the real economy overall, including Korean Wave-related industries,' adding, 'We will continue to contribute to raising the economic and cultural value of K-culture through research and analysis on the Korean Wave and related industries.' The agency said KOCCA Focus No. 214 can be viewed for free on its website.