South Korea’s May consumer inflation near 14-year high, surpasses expectations

SOUTH Korea’s consumer prices in May rose faster than expected and at their fastest annual pace in nearly 14 years, government data showed on Friday. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 5.4 per cent in May from a year before, the Statistics Korea data showed, speeding up from a 4.8 per cent rise the previous month and faster than 5.1 per cent tipped in a Reuters poll. It was the fastest annual growth since August 2008 and stood above the central bank’s 2 per cent target for a 14th consecutive month. The core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 3.4 per cent, marking the fastest rise since February 2009. REUTERS