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South Korean inflation trends and forecasts
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2026-10-02 03:45 UTC → 2026-10-03 20:50 UTC ·
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South Korea’s annual consumer inflation slowed to 2.9% in September, down from 3.1% in August. This deceleration was attributed to falling While government supply increases and holiday discounts helped lower prices in the some agricultural, livestock, and fisheries sectors, aided other areas faced significant upward pressure. Petroleum products saw a sharp rise, with diesel surging by 20%, though officials estimated that a government petroleum price cap policy prevented inflation from reaching 3.5%. Processed foods increased by 2.1%, and IT devices experienced notable hikes, including computers at 27.4% and mobile phones at 8.3%. Data from Statistics Korea indicates that rising costs in fresh agricultural products and energy commodities were primary drivers of inflation. Severe summer weather, characterized by extreme heat waves and torrential rainfall, disrupted harvests and led to price escalations for fresh vegetables, fruits, and livestock. These supply increases constraints increased wholesale and holiday discounts. However, significant upward pressure persisted retail distribution charges. Additionally, fluctuations in petroleum products, processed foods, global crude oil prices and IT devices. higher natural gas costs impacted domestic fuel prices and utility benchmarks, subsequently affecting transportation expenses for commuters and commercial logistics providers. By early October, the Bank of Korea indicated noted that while the headline rate decreased, the underlying inflationary trend had expanded when accounting for due to the expiration of temporary base effects, such as previous discounts on mobile phone fees. effects. Deputy Governor Lee Ji-ho noted highlighted that core inflation remains pressured by rising costs in personal services, including such as airfares and travel expenses, travel, as well as durable goods driven by semiconductor prices. The Bank forecasts that inflation will remain near 3% in October, citing ongoing uncertainties from Middle East conflicts and potential cost shocks.
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- 2026-10-03 20:50 UTC South Korean inflation trends and forecasts
- 2026-10-02 03:45 UTC South Korean inflation trends and forecasts
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