South Korea's consumer prices rose by 1.4% y/y in August: Data
Arirang News
2018-09-05
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Consumer prices in South Korea are continuing to grow too slowly for the country's central bank.
The Bank of Korea is targeting two percent, but overall price growth remained rooted in the one percent range last month.
Kim Ji-yeon reports.
South Korea's consumer prices remained in the one-percent growth range for the eleventh straight month in August.
Statistics Korea says overall consumer prices increased by one-point-four-percent compared to the same month last year.
The rate of increase was pulled down by electricity, water and gas prices... which plunged nearly nine-percent on-year.
The statistics agency says the government's revision to the progressive electricity billing rates had some impact on consumer prices... lowering them by around zero-point-three-percent.
Most of the price increases came from vegetables and fruits... as well as crude oil.
Prices of agricultural, livestock and marine products climbed three-and-a-half-percent from the same period last year... affected by the record-breaking heatwave.
"To stabilize prices ahead of Chuseok, Korea's Thanksgiving holiday, the government laid out measures late last month on 14 main items such as cabbages and fruits... to increase their supply at local wholesale markets. Up to 70-percent discounts will be provided during the holiday period."
Prices of Dubai crude, Korea's benchmark, traded at around 73 dollars a barrel on average in August... raising the prices of local gasoline by 11-percent on-year.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile oil and food prices, edged up nearly one percent on-year.
"The most important factor in determining consumer price increases is probably domestic demand... which is indicated by core inflation. The level of consumer price increases is likely to stay below the BOK's 2% target since core inflation remains around the one-percent level."
"Last month's consumer price increases fell below the BOK's target of two-percent... raising speculation that the central bank is likely to pursue monetary tightening measures at a gradual pace."
The BOK kept its benchmark interest rate at one-point-five percent for the ninth consecutive month in August.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.
The Bank of Korea is targeting two percent, but overall price growth remained rooted in the one percent range last month.
Kim Ji-yeon reports.
South Korea's consumer prices remained in the one-percent growth range for the eleventh straight month in August.
Statistics Korea says overall consumer prices increased by one-point-four-percent compared to the same month last year.
The rate of increase was pulled down by electricity, water and gas prices... which plunged nearly nine-percent on-year.
The statistics agency says the government's revision to the progressive electricity billing rates had some impact on consumer prices... lowering them by around zero-point-three-percent.
Most of the price increases came from vegetables and fruits... as well as crude oil.
Prices of agricultural, livestock and marine products climbed three-and-a-half-percent from the same period last year... affected by the record-breaking heatwave.
"To stabilize prices ahead of Chuseok, Korea's Thanksgiving holiday, the government laid out measures late last month on 14 main items such as cabbages and fruits... to increase their supply at local wholesale markets. Up to 70-percent discounts will be provided during the holiday period."
Prices of Dubai crude, Korea's benchmark, traded at around 73 dollars a barrel on average in August... raising the prices of local gasoline by 11-percent on-year.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile oil and food prices, edged up nearly one percent on-year.
"The most important factor in determining consumer price increases is probably domestic demand... which is indicated by core inflation. The level of consumer price increases is likely to stay below the BOK's 2% target since core inflation remains around the one-percent level."
"Last month's consumer price increases fell below the BOK's target of two-percent... raising speculation that the central bank is likely to pursue monetary tightening measures at a gradual pace."
The BOK kept its benchmark interest rate at one-point-five percent for the ninth consecutive month in August.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.
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