Consumer price index data for last month fell far below the Bank of Korea's target of two-percent... largely due to the government's measures to ease the burden for households on their electricity bills.
Kim Ji-yeon reports.
South Korea's consumer prices remained in the one-percent growth range for the eleventh straight month in August.
Statistics Korea says overall consumer prices increased by one-point-four-percent compared to the same month last year.
The rate of increase was pulled down by electricity, water and gas prices... which plunged nearly nine-percent on-year.
The statistics agency says the government's revision to the progressive electricity billing rates had some impact on consumer prices... lowering them by around zero-point-three-percent.
Most of the price increases came from vegetables and fruits... as well as crude oil.
Prices of agricultural, livestock and marine products climbed three-and-a-half-percent from the same period last year... affected by the record-breaking heatwave.
Prices of Dubai crude, Korea's benchmark, traded at around 73 dollars a barrel on average in August... raising the prices of local gasoline by 11-percent on-year.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile oil and food prices, edged up nearly one percent on-year.
Last month's consumer price increases fell below the BOK's target of two-percent... raising speculation that the central bank is likely to pursue monetary tightening measures at a gradual pace.
The BOK kept its benchmark interest rate at one-point-five percent for the ninth consecutive month in August.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.