producer price-February

Producer prices up for 3rd month in Feb. on high prices of farm, industrial goods

SEOUL, March 22 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's producer prices rose for the third consecutive month in February, driven in part by soaring prices of agricultural goods and industrial goods, central bank data showed Friday.

The producer price index, a major barometer of consumer inflation, increased 0.3 percent in February from a month earlier, following 0.5 percent and 0.1 percent on-month gains respectively in January and December, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

On a yearly basis, the index rose 1.5 percent after a 1.3 percent on-year gain the previous month.

The rise is blamed on a 0.8 percent increase in agricultural products and a 0.5 percent advance in prices of industrial goods.

Producer prices are one of the key indicators that determine the trajectory of inflation, as they influence the prices that businesses charge to consumers in the months ahead.

Last month, consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 3.1 percent on-year, compared with a 2.8 percent increase a month earlier, marking the first time in four months that the price growth accelerated in an on-month term.

The country's central bank froze its key rate for the ninth straight session at 3.5 percent last month amid slower-than-expected inflation moderation and high household debt.

The rate freezes came after the BOK delivered seven consecutive rate hikes from April 2022 to January 2023.



sam@yna.co.kr

(END)

주의사항

※본 리포트는 한국무역보험공사가 외부기관으로부터 획득한 자료를 인용한 것입니다.

※참고자료로만 활용하시기 바랍니다.