SEOUL, June 16 (Xinhua) -- Price for imported goods to South Korea rebounded last month on higher commodity prices, central bank data showed Thursday.
The import price index gained 3.6 percent in May from a month earlier, after declining 0.6 percent in April, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
It was attributable to a higher crude oil price. The monthly average price for Dubai crude, South Korea's benchmark, fell from 110.9 U.S. dollars per barrel in March to 102.8 dollars in April before going up to 108.2 dollars in May.
The price for imported raw materials rebounded 6.5 percent in May after decreasing 2.1 percent in the previous month.
The import price for intermediary goods, including oil products, rose 2.0 percent in the cited month.
The price for imported coal and oil products added 1.6 percent, and those for chemical products and electric equipment advanced 3.1 percent and 4.4 percent respectively.
The price for imported capital and consumer goods increased 2.0 percent and 1.8 percent each last month.
Meanwhile, the export price index picked up 3.1 percent in May from a month earlier, after climbing 1.5 percent in the prior month.
It kept an upward trend for the fifth consecutive month on the South Korean currency's depreciation to the dollar.
The won/dollar exchange rate averaged 1,269.9 won per dollar in May, up from 1,232.3 won in the previous month. ■