South Korea August producer prices fall at fastest rate in 16-1/2 years

[SEOUL] South Korea's producer prices fell in August at their sharpest annual pace in 16-and-a-half years on low energy prices and weak demand, central bank data showed on Friday, indicating benign consumer inflation ahead.

The producer price index (PPI) in August dropped 4.4 per cent from a year earlier, Bank of Korea data showed, marking the 13th month in a row that the index has fallen on a year-on-year basis and scoring the fastest annual decline since February 1999.

Price pressure eased in all major categories as global raw material costs stood far lower than a year before and as demand both at home and globally remained too weak to encourage producers to raise prices.

REUTERS