There are few foreign tourists in Seoul these days, and duty-free shops visited by journalists are closed. Signs on the doors say they will be closed every weekend from Feb. 22 to April 26.According to the reporter, due to a sharp deterioration in operating conditions, the store has decided to close in the second half of the year.

South Korea's tax-free shops have long been likened to the "goose that laid the golden egg" because of their fat profits, and now the goose is on its last legs.Sales in South Korea's duty-free shop sector have fallen 90 per cent year on year this month, several airports have been closed and shops in the city have closed or changed their hours.

Some duty-free shops in South Korea are trying to claw back sales by scanning for "contactless shopping".However, since duty-free items can only be purchased by an outbound plane ticket, Chinese tourists are the largest consumers of duty-free shops in South Korea.Affected by the outbreak, the daily number of outbound tourists in South Korea has been reduced from over 100,000 to just over 1,000.No one left the country, there were no customers in duty-free shops, and no amount of sales tactics worked.