SEOUL, KOREA - The producer prices have continued their declining trend for 13 months in a row. Given the producer price trend precedes that for consumer prices, it is forecast the low price trend to go on for the time being.

 

The Bank of Korea said on November 18 the October producer prices fell 1.4 percent from the same month last year. This is the 13th month in which producer prices decline after October last year when the prices fell 0.5 percent. The longest spell was recorded for the 14 months between July 2001 and August 2002.

 

The item that exhibited the highest fall for the month was agricultural and fishery goods (-6.8%), including napa cabbage (-50.5%), white radish (-47.1%), and green onion (-45.4%). Fishery goods such as mackerel (-27.9%), laver seaweed (-23.0%), and hairtail (-15.6%) also saw their price fall by a large margin due to concerns over radioactive contamination originating from Japanese coasts.

 

Some manufactured goods and energy products were on a declining trend. The prices for coal and oil products fell 7.4 percent while those for primary metal products declined 5.7 percent. Meanwhile, the prices for services rose 0.4 percent from a year ago, with those for utilities including electricity, gas, and water rose 4.5 percent year on year.