The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister HWANG Hee, MCST) and the Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange (President JUNG Kilhwa, KOFICE) released “2022 Survey on Overseas Hallyu Status (As of 2021)” to overview the status of the Hallyu beyond Korea. This year’s survey was conducted online from November 5, 2021 to December 8, 2021 among 8,500 people from 18 different countries.[1]

  Even during the pandemic, the result shows that more people enjoyed Hallyu. The figure shows that among cultural industry consumption, Hallyu (entertainment business) took on average 27.4%. Specifically, beauty industry took 31.7%, drama at 31%, and fashion at 29.2%. 

  The “Brand Competitiveness Index (Brand Power Index)[2]” of Hallyu was first introduced last year to understand the current status and the future of Hallyu. In 2021, the figure stood at 61.6 points, up 3.1 points from the previous year. Looking specific into each category, Korean food (67.6 points), beauty (65.3 points), and movies (64.3 points) were ranked at top, indicating that not only dramas, movies, and singers but also related industries were recognized as having global competitiveness. The percentage of respondents who answered that their personal preference for Hallyu and the popularity of Hallyu in their country was “high” increased from 2021 in all areas, and the most popular fields were drama (37.3%), entertainment (32.9%), beauty (beauty, 29%), games (23.7%), publishing (22.2%), and food (17.1%).

  The result for the specific category was as follows: The most famous drama was “Squid Game” (21.2%),  followed by “Crash Landing on You” (2.2%) and “Vincenzo” (1.9%). Among Korean singers, “BTS (26.7%)” and “Black Pink (10.4%)” took first and second places following last year. In addition, actor Lee Min-ho (9.3%), movie “Parasite” (10.3%), animation character “Lava” (9.6%), and game “Battleground” (14.5%) were the most loved ones in each category. The survey also revealed that overseas Hallyu fans enjoy Korean entertainment industry via online and mobile platforms.

  In addition, the result shows that the national image raised by the Korean Wave had positive ripple effects on related industries by increasing trust in Korean products and services. More than 60% of the respondents answered that Hallyu affects the purchase and use of Korean products and services. Also, the number of people who responded that they will purchase Korean products even if they are unfamiliar with brands increased by 7.4 % points from 40% last year.

  However, even with the popularity of Hallyu rising worldwide, negative perceptions have also increased. As of 2021, anti-Korean wave recorded 30.7%, up 6.3 % points from the previous year, which was 24.4%. The reasons were ‘Excessive commerciality’ (25.1%) and ‘Need to protect their home country’s entertainment industry’ (22.7%) and these results tell that it is necessary to facilitate mutual growth in cultural business and create a friendly environment.