Bank of Korea: "Living Costs Still High, Outlook Path Uncertainty Large"

Bank of Korea Holds 'Price Situation Review Meeting'
Sharp Rise in Oil and Agricultural Product Prices Drives Inflation Up
Increased Uncertainty in Inflation Path

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Bank of Korea stated that the cost of living continues to rise sharply, and there remains significant uncertainty regarding the inflation outlook path.

Kim Woong, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Korea, held a meeting on the inflation situation at the Bank's headquarters on the morning of the 2nd and said, "As the cost of living continues to rise sharply and there is still considerable uncertainty about the inflation outlook path, it is necessary to observe future inflation trends a bit longer to gain confidence in converging to the inflation target."

According to the 'March 2024 Consumer Price Trends' released by Statistics Korea that morning, the consumer price inflation rate last month was 3.1%, maintaining the 3% range for two consecutive months following February (3.1%). The cost of living inflation rate also increased to 3.8%, up from 3.7% in February.

The Bank of Korea analyzed that international oil prices and petroleum product prices (1.2%), as well as agricultural product prices such as apples, pears, and tangerines (20.5%), continued to rise sharply, pushing up consumer prices.

Regarding the future inflation outlook, Deputy Governor Kim emphasized, "Core inflation is expected to continue a gradual slowdown due to a slow recovery in consumption," adding, "While the consumer price inflation rate is expected to show a decelerating trend overall, there is a possibility of a somewhat uneven pattern for the time being depending on movements in oil and agricultural product prices."

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