S. Korea's import prices fall for first time in 5 months in Feb.: BOK

SEOUL, March 14 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's import prices fell for the first time in five months in February due mainly to falling global oil prices, central bank data showed Friday.

The import price index shed 0.8 percent from a month earlier in February, following a 2.2 percent on-month increase the previous month, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The index fell for the first time since September, as the average price of Dubai crude, South Korea's benchmark, fell 3.1 percent from a month earlier to an average of US$77.92 per barrel in February, government data showed.

From a year earlier, the index advanced 4.6 percent in February.

Import prices of raw materials went down 2.3 percent on-month in February, while those of intermediate goods inched down 0.2 percent, according to the BOK.

Import prices are a major factor that determine the path of the country's overall rate of inflation.

The export price index lost 0.6 percent from a month earlier in February, also marking the first on-month fall in five months.

Compared with a year earlier, the index surged 6.3 percent.

Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 2 percent from a year earlier in February following 2.2 percent growth in January.

The central bank earlier forecast consumer prices to grow 1.9 percent annually in 2025.

graceoh@yna.co.kr
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