Record 54 Pct of S. Koreans Have Good Impression of Japan: Survey

Seoul, Aug. 3 (Jiji Press)–The proportion of people in South Korea who have a good impression of Japan rose 1.9 percentage points to 54.3 pct in 2026 from the previous year, a survey by East Asia Institute, a think tank in South Korea, showed Monday. The reading hit the highest level since the survey began in 2013. With multiple answers allowed, 66.9 pct of respondents with a favorable impression said that Japanese people are kind-hearted and prioritize maintaining order, while 43.9 pct said that Japan had an appealing food culture and shopping opportunities, according to the survey. The survey found that 71.6 pct of respondents said they had visited Japan, signaling that an expansion of people-to-people exchanges between the two countries helped improve South Korean people’s image of Japan. On the other hand, 38.5 pct said that they had a bad impression of Japan. The survey was conducted jointly with the International House of Japan, a nonprofit organization in Tokyo that surveyed Japanese people’s views on South Korea. The Japanese survey showed that 35.3 pct of respondents had a good impression of South Korea in 2026, up 10.5 points from the previous year. Last year, the figure fell due to concerns over former South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s failed martial law bid at the end of 2024 and the inauguration of his successor, Lee Jae-myung, in 2025, who had been known for his hardline anti-Japanese stance. The latest survey was conducted in mid-July, covering people aged 18 or over. It received responses from about 1,500 people each in Japan and South Korea. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]