Central Banks
Korea Inflation Slows in May, Giving BOK Scope to Pause
- Consumer prices up 3.3%, smallest advance since October 2021
- String of cooler inflation gives BOK room to be patient
The slowdown in inflation signals that the Bank of Korea’s aggressive pace of interest rate hikes is damping price pressures in a sustained way.
Photographer: Woohae Cho/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
South Korea’s inflation eased for a fourth straight month in May, another indication that price pressures are pulling back and giving the central bank scope to maintain its interest rate pause.
Consumer prices advanced 3.3% in May from the prior year, the smallest increase since October 2021, according to data from the statistics office Friday. The figure was below economists’ expectations for a 3.4% rise. Core inflation, which excludes oil and agricultural prices, rose 4.3% in May, easing from a 4.6% increase in the previous month, though still remains high.