Producer prices up for 9th month in July

SEOUL, Aug. 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's producer prices gained 0.7 percent on-month in July due to a modest rise in prices of food and energy, extending their monthly gains for the ninth straight month, central bank data showed Friday.

The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, stood at 110.02 in July, compared with 109.22 a month earlier, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The July index advanced 7.1 percent from the previous year, the BOK data showed.

The prices of agricultural goods rose 2.4 percent on-month in July, and the prices of livestock goods also gained 2.4 percent from the previous month, the BOK said.

The prices of coal and petroleum products reported a 5.1 percent on-month gain last month.

In July, consumer prices grew more than 2 percent for the fourth straight month on higher prices of farm and oil products, indicating a build-up in inflationary pressure amid an economic recovery.

The consumer prices rose 2.6 percent on-year in July, accelerating from a 2.4 percent on-year gain the previous month, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

The pickup in inflation was due largely to last year's low base, and the tight supply of farm and livestock products, according to the statistics agency.

Compared with a month earlier, inflation rose 0.2 percent last month, switching from a 0.1 percent on-month decline in June.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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