Updated : 2025-12-31 22:00:00 KST
Looking back on this year's consumer price fluctuations, South Korea recorded an increase of 2-point-1 percent, the smallest in five years. Lee Eun-jin has this report. Consumer prices play a key role in gauging inflation. According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics on Wednesday, the consumer price index for 2025 increased by 2-point-one percent year-on-year, which is slightly above the Bank of Korea's inflation target of 2 percent. This figure marks the lowest such increase since 2020, when it was zero-point-five percent.
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Inflation surged to 2-point-5 percent in 2021, before a huge hike to 5-point-1 percent in 2022 due to the impact of the pandemic, before moderating to 3-point-6 percent in 2023 then 2-point-3 percent in 2024. The data ministry said this month's inflation was mainly due to a sharp increase in petroleum product prices, which jumped 6-point-1 percent from a year earlier, marking the largest year-on-year gain since a 6-point-3 percent rise in February. The ministry added that prices of diesel surged 10-point-8 percent, while gasoline prices rose 5-point-7 percent, reflecting the impact of the weak Korean won.
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Year-on-year, petroleum product prices rose 2-point-4 percent, marking a return to an upward trend for the first time since 2022. A ministry official explained that because South Korea depends heavily on imports for energy, even though international oil prices have fallen compared with a year ago, rising exchange rates and a reduction in fuel tax cuts appear to have pushed up gasoline and diesel prices. Prices of agricultural, livestock and fishery products climbed 4‑point‑1 percent in December, adding 0‑point‑3-2 percentage points to overall inflation.
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Imported beef prices increased 8 percent, the sharpest rise since August of last year. The Korean won remains among the world's weakest-performing currencies, as it has over the past year. Meanwhile, the government said inflation could soon ease as foreign exchange rates stabilize, vowing to make every effort to keep everyday prices in check next year. Lee Eunjin, Arirang News.
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영어 원문 출처 및 동영상 링크;
arirang news/Economy
https://m.arirang.com/news/view?id=291050