Only 45.1% of South Korea’s small and medium-sized enterprises plan to pay a Chuseok bonus this year, while 54.9% will either pay none or have not decided. The findings came from a Korea Federation of SMEs survey of 1,000 companies conducted over one week from Sept. 1 and released on Sept. 17. Among firms planning payments, 40.5% expect to keep bonuses at last year’s level, 1.2% plan increases and 3.4% reductions. Bonus plans average 37.7% of base salary for percentage-based payments and 650,000 won per worker for flat payments. Firms outside the greater Seoul area plan larger bonuses than those in the capital region. Cash conditions have deteriorated, particularly for manufacturers, as weak sales, higher raw-material and component prices, rising labor costs and delayed collections weigh on liquidity. SMEs estimate they need an average of 256.45 million won each to get through Chuseok but can secure only 197.97 million won, leaving a shortfall of 58.48 million won, or 78.44% of required funds. One in three companies reported difficulty borrowing, with high lending rates the leading obstacle. The Korea Federation of SMEs said financial-sector attention and pre-emptive support are urgently needed to prevent the cash crunch from developing into a chain of defaults and to speed relief to vulnerable groups such as traditional-market merchants.