producer prices-October
Producer prices up in Oct. on higher electricity, gas bills
SEOUL, Nov. 24 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's producer prices rose for the second straight month in October, as high energy and gas prices drove up manufacturing costs, central bank data showed Thursday.
The producer price index, a major barometer of consumer inflation, rose 0.5 percent in October from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).
It marked the second straight on-month rise following a 0.1 percent increase in September.
From a year earlier, the index jumped 7.3 percent.
The on-month rise in producer prices is blamed on increased utility bills stemming from electricity and gas rate hikes.
Producer prices are one of the key indicators for the level of inflation.
Consumer prices -- a key gauge of inflation -- jumped 5.7 percent in October from a year earlier, quickening from a 5.6 percent rise the previous month.
The central bank has raised its policy interest rate eight times by a combined 2.5 percentage points since August last year, including October's 0.5 point rise.
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