According to data compiled by the Credit Finance Association of Korea on Thursday, people went plastic with 322 trillion won (about US$220 billion) worth of purchases, or 7.2 billion transactions, in the first quarter, up 7.2 percent and 5.1 percent, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
Personal card spending rose 6.8 percent to 264.4 trillion won while corporate card spending climbed 8.7 percent to 57.8 trillion won.
Online shopping remained strong, rising 8.5 percent from a year earlier to 46.7 trillion won, largely driven by food delivery and travel bookings.
A rebound in travel demand also boosted card spending, with the number of air passengers rising 12.6 percent in the first three months of this year, while spending by foreign tourists surged 37.1 percent.
The association also cited higher oil prices in March, which drove up spending on fuel.
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