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☆ South Korea Jan inflation 5.2%, faster than expected
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL, Feb 2 (Reuters) - South Korea's consumer inflation ticked up in January to a three-month high, against economists' expectations, official data showed on Thursday. The consumer price index was 5.2% higher in January than in the same month a year before, faster than 5.0% seen in December, according to Statistics Korea. Economists had expected the pace of growth to stay steady at 5.0%. The index rose 0.8% on a monthly basis, compared with 0.2% in the previous month and 0.5% tipped in a Reuters poll. Reporting by Jihoon Lee and Choonsik Yoo: Editing by Neil Fullick and Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ South Korea Jan inflation ticks up, leaves policy outlook steady
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Jihoon Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The annual rate of price rises was the highest since October, when it was 5.7%. Temporary effects that had pushed up inflation included a lift in electricity charges, unfavourable weather for vegetables and a strong round of regular annual price rises, the Finance Ministry said in a statement. A breakdown of the data showed January public utility costs had risen 4.6% from the previous month while agricultural products had jumped 6.2%, leading the index higher. The Bank of Korea said in a separate statement that the tick-up in the inflation rate was in line with its expectations. The annual rate would be just as high in February, around 5%, it said.

[1/4] A man clears away the snow from an alley as it snows on a cold winter day in Seoul, South Korea, January 26, 2023. REUTERS/Kim Hong-JiSEOUL, Jan 26 (Reuters) - South Korea plans to double energy vouchers and a discount of gas prices for underprivileged families to cope with spiralling heating bills amid a prolonged cold wave, officials said on Thursday. Many South Korean households began to feel the impact in recent weeks after turning up the heat amid a cold spell, with monthly gas bills up 34% last month from a year ago, according to Statistics Korea. "There is an inevitable aspect of realising energy prices under these difficult external circumstances," he told a briefing. Many South Koreans expressed concerns over additional hikes in energy bills as freezing winter weather continued.

☆ South Korea Dec 2022 unemployment rate rises to 11-month high
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL, Jan 11 (Reuters) - South Korea's unemployment rate rose to an 11-month high in December 2022, while the annual increase in employed people marked the smallest in 21 months, official data showed on Wednesday. The country's seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for December stood at 3.3%, higher than 2.9% in November and the highest since January, according to Statistics Korea. In the 12 months through December, the number of employed people increased by 509,000, extending a run of year-on-year gains to a 22nd straight month but marking the smallest annual increase since March 2021. For the year 2022, South Korea's annual unemployment rate stood at 2.9%, falling from 3.7% in 2021 and the lowest level since the data release started in 2000. Reporting by Jihoon Lee Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ South Korea Dec inflation steady at 5.0%, as expected
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/ Heo RanSEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea’s consumer prices in December rose 5.0% from a year earlier, official data showed on Friday, matching market expectations and the pace seen in November. A breakdown of the data showed prices of agricultural products had been 1.6% lower than in December 2021. But utility prices jumped 23.2% and private service prices 6.0%, keeping the overall annual inflation rate high. The fall in the core annual rate in December was the first since November 2021. No year-average inflation rate has been so high since 1998.

☆ South Korea Nov retail sales fall for third straight month
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL, Dec 29 (Reuters) - South Korea's retail sales fell for a third straight month in November, government data showed on Thursday, and were set to end the last quarter of 2022 with losses, reversing gains in the third quarter. The country's retail sales fell 1.8% in November, on a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, following a 0.2% loss in October and 2.0% fall in September, according to Statistics Korea. The output for the services sector decreased 0.6%, after falling 1.1% and 0.1% in October and September, respectively. In the manufacturing sector, the output edged up by 0.4%, after four straight months of losses, although it posted the worst drop in 2-1/2 years of 3.7% on a year-on-year basis. Reporting by Jihoon Lee Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ South Korea Oct factory output drops at fastest pace since May 2020
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Nov 30 (Reuters) - South Korea's factory output dropped in October by more than expected and at the fastest pace in nearly 2-1/2 years, government data showed on Wednesday, amid weakening demand due to a global economic slowdown, and aggressive rate hikes. The country's industrial output fell by a seasonally adjusted 3.5% in October from a month earlier, accelerating from a revised 1.9% decline in September, according to Statistics Korea. It missed economists' expectations of a 1.0% fall tipped in a Reuters survey and marked the fastest decline since May 2020. Output for the services sector fell 0.8%, faster than 0.2% a month before and the fastest since Dec. 2020, while retail sales lost 0.2%. The country's factory output fell 1.1% on a yearly basis, also below 0.0% expected in the survey, snapping a 12-month streak of annual gains.

☆ South Korean households' quarterly income falls for first time since Q2 2021 - govt data
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL, Nov 17 (Reuters) - South Korean households' quarterly income declined on the year for the first time since the second quarter of 2021, government data showed on Thursday, amid cooling economic growth and surging inflation. Disposable income for households nationwide fell 3.6% in real terms in the third quarter from the same period a year earlier, according to the Statistics Korea data. The decline came just after a record-high 8.3% rise in the second quarter. In the third quarter, South Korea's economic growth fell to its slowest in a year, as poor net exports offset pent-up spending, while consumer prices jumped 5.9% over a year earlier, the fastest in nearly 24 years. Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Kenneth MaxwellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ S.Korea inflation ticks up in Oct, tops expectations
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Choonsik Yoo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Nov 2 (Reuters) - South Korea's annual consumer inflation in October ticked up from September against market expectations for no change, led by lagging effects of earlier global raw materials prices, government data showed on Wednesday. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 5.7% in October from a year earlier, according to the Statistics Korea data. The median forecast in a Reuters survey of economists was for the annual CPI growth to be 5.6% in October, although five of the 11 economists polled predicted higher rates. The CPI rose 0.3% in October on a monthly basis, the same rate as in September and higher than a 0.2% gain seen in the survey. Core inflation, which strips volatile foods and energy prices, ticked up to 4.2% in October on an annual basis from 4.1% in September to mark the fastest since December 2008.

SEOUL, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Across South Korea, events such as autumn foliage festivals and K-Pop concerts are canceled, and grief-stricken communities are putting off gatherings after a Seoul crowd crush killed at least 154 people, threatening to crimp growth further. Universities have canceled weekend retreats known as MTs, and the opening event of the two-week Korea Sale Festa, the Korean version of the Black Friday, was called off. South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju called off the Jeju Olle Walking Festival, scheduled from Nov 3 to 5. The Korea Baseball Organization and Korea Volleyball Federation both said there won't be cheerleaders during its championship series. South Korea's economic growth already decelerated last quarter in response to slowing exports and a weakening currency.

☆ South Korea's Sept unemployment rate rises from record low
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SEOUL, Oct 14 (Reuters) - South Korea's unemployment rate rose in September from a record low set in August while employment fell slightly, data showed on Friday, a sign that a year-long policy tightening campaign and slowing exports have begun to cool the economy. The country's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rebounded to 2.8% in September from 2.5% in August, which was the lowest since the data series began in June 1999. However, it was still far below an average of 3.6% set in all of 2021. The employment rate edged down 0.1 percentage point to 62.2% in September from August after adjusting for seasonal factors, the Statistics Korea data showed. Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong said after the rate decision on Wednesday that Asia's fourth-largest economy has begun softening, although economists expect it to raise the rate further in the coming months.

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