South Korean retailers and fashion outlets are seeing record-breaking sales during their big discount events this month, but industry watchers said the results do not signal a long-awaited recovery in consumer sentiment.

The sales rebound displayed a typical consumer spending pattern during an economic downturn: closing wallets in everyday life, but opening them wide for cost-effective items, they said.

Musinsa, a leading street fashion platform, sold 50 billion won ($39 million) worth of products on Nov. 23, the first day of its biggest discount event of the year. That means it sold at least 33 million won worth of items every minute on the day.

Source: KED