South Korea's Oct import prices rise at slowest pace in 15 months

SEOUL : South Korea's export and import prices rose at slower paces in October, with the latter softening to a 15-month low, central bank data showed on Tuesday.

The country's export prices, in terms of the won currency, rose 13.7 per cent in October from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea's provisional data, slower than a revised 14.7 per cent rise in the previous month.

Import prices also rose at a slower annual rate of 19.8 per cent, compared with a revised 24.2 per cent gain in September, and it marked the slowest rate since July 2021.

The slowdown came despite higher oil prices and a weaker currency than in the previous month, with Dubai oil prices and dollar-won exchange rates rising 0.2 per cent and 2.5 per cent on monthly average, respectively, according to the BOK.

In October 2021, export and import prices jumped 26.1 per cent and 36.3 per cent, respectively, marking their fastest annual growth rates in more than 13 years.