As International Oil Prices Rise, Gasoline Prices Increase for 3 Consecutive Weeks... Up 15 Won This Week Alone

National Average Price 1,667.6 KRW per Liter
Seoul at 1,738.6 KRW

On the 3rd, a gas station in Seoul was selling gasoline at 2,095 won per liter (ℓ). Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Gasoline prices at gas stations continued to rise for the third consecutive week as international oil prices increased.

According to the Korea National Oil Corporation's oil price information site Opinet on the 5th, the nationwide gasoline retail price for the first week of this month was recorded at 1,667.6 KRW per liter (ℓ), up 15.2 KRW from the previous week.

Domestic gasoline prices at gas stations surged to 1,807.0 KRW per liter in November last year, reaching the highest level in over seven years since September 2014, then declined for nine consecutive weeks following the government's fuel tax reduction measures.

The situation changed due to the sharp rise in international oil prices. After turning to an upward trend again in the third week of last month, prices have risen for three consecutive weeks. The recent weekly price increases were 10.1 KRW, 18.9 KRW, and 15.2 KRW, respectively.

Domestic gasoline prices tend to follow international oil prices, a leading indicator, with a lag of two to three weeks. The upward trend in domestic gasoline prices is expected to continue for the time being.

The highest gasoline price region nationwide, Seoul, recorded 1,738.6 KRW per liter, up 13.5 KRW from the previous week, while the lowest price region, Daegu, recorded 1,639.2 KRW per liter, up 10.3 KRW.

By brand, GS Caltex gasoline was the most expensive at 1,676.4 KRW per liter, while budget gas stations were the cheapest at 1,629.8 KRW per liter.

The nationwide diesel retail price also rose by 14.9 KRW to 1,486.0 KRW per liter.

International oil prices have reached their highest level in seven years since October 2014 due to geopolitical risks such as Russia's threat to invade Ukraine and drone attacks on oil facilities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The average price of Dubai crude, the benchmark for domestic imported crude oil, was 87.5 dollars per barrel as of the 3rd of this month, up 1 dollar from a week earlier.

The international gasoline (92 RON) average price, which surpassed 100 dollars last week, rose by 2 dollars this week to reach 102.8 dollars per barrel.

The corporation explained, "International oil prices are on the rise due to ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, cold waves in the US Midwest, and concerns about oil supply shortages from 'OPEC Plus(+)'." OPEC+ refers to the consultative group of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and major non-OPEC oil-producing countries including Russia.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.