Three domestic department stores recorded the highest ever foreign sales in the first half of this year (January to June). Annual sales to foreigners reached 1 trillion won. As the number of tourists visiting Korea has increased rapidly and the won-dollar exchange rate has risen (the value of the won has fallen), department stores are being evaluated as being reborn as tourism and shopping platforms.● As foreign tourists increased, department stores also took off. Lotte Department Store announced on the 13th that foreign sales in the first half of this year were estimated at approximately KRW 640 billion. It is the largest ever on a half-year basis. Lotte Department Store's sales to foreigners last year were KRW 734.8 billion, and this year, sales reached close to that amount in just six months. Shinsegae Department Store also announced that sales from foreign customers during the same period were KRW 580 billion, a 120% increase compared to the same period last year. Last year, 90% of annual foreign sales (approximately 650 billion won) were achieved in the first half of the year. Hyundai Department Store also announced that foreign sales in the first half of this year were approximately 500 billion won. The Hyundai Seoul, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, where foreign sales account for more than 20%, had foreign sales in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year.