SEOUL, June 2 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's consumer price inflation hit a 26-month high due to surging oil product prices driven by tensions in the Middle East, statistical ministry data showed Tuesday.
The consumer price index (CPI) shot up 3.1 percent in May from a year earlier, marking the fastest gain since March 2024, according to the Ministry of Data and Statistics.
Headline inflation has stayed above the central bank's mid-term inflation target of 2 percent for nine straight months since September 2025.
Prices for industrial products, including oil products and processed food, spiked 4.2 percent in May compared to the same month last year, up from 3.8 percent in the previous month.
Prices for oil products surged 24.2 percent in May, pushing overall inflation up by 0.92 percentage points. This marked the fastest increase in nearly four years, since July 2022.
Prices for gasoline and diesel jumped 23.1 percent and 33.3 percent, respectively, while computer prices went up 19.0 percent amid higher semiconductor prices.
Prices for agricultural, livestock and fishery products climbed 2.2 percent in May from a year earlier, marking the first rebound in three months.
Prices for electricity, natural gas and tap water were up 0.1 percent in May on a yearly basis.
City gas charge, heating cost and waterworks fee added in single digits, while electricity bills dipped 0.4 percent.
Service prices surged 2.8 percent in the month, lifting headline inflation by 1.56 percentage points, marking the fastest increase since December 2023.
Driven by a surge in fuel surcharges amid rising oil prices, international airfares jumped 33.5 percent last month, marking the steepest increase since records began in 1995.
The livelihood items index, which gauges prices for daily necessities, climbed 3.3 percent, while the fresh food index, which measures prices for fish, shellfish, fruit and vegetables, declined 1.4 percent.
Demand-side inflationary pressure lingered. Core consumer price index, which excludes volatile agricultural and oil products, appreciated 2.5 percent.
The OECD-method core price index, excluding volatile energy and food costs, picked up 2.5 percent in the cited month. ■