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Korea¡¯s inflation rate in June was the sixth highest among the 30 member states of the OECD, according to a report released by the organization on Monday. Korea¡¯s ranking has been steadily on the rise, from 15th in February to eighth in May, much faster than most other countries.
The average inflation rate in the OECD in June was 4.4 percent from the same month of last year. Korea saw an increase in consumer prices of 5.5 percent, 1.1 percentage points above the OECD average. This is also higher than the average of 4.1 percent of the G7 countries -- Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S.
Iceland topped the OECD chart with 12.8 percent inflation, and Turkey came second with 10.6 percent. The Czech Republic and Hungary tied for third place with 6.7 percent, and Belgium was fifth with 5.8 percent. Japan was at the bottom of the list with 2 percent, and the Netherlands also had a low rate of 2.6 percent. Switzerland, Canada and Germany also successfully kept inflation low, with 2.9, 3.1 and 3.3 percent.
Chang Jae-chul, an economist at the Samsung Economic Research Institute, said, ¡°Korea¡¯s economy is highly dependent on raw materials imported from overseas. Adding to that, the weak-won policy by the government and massive selling of Korean stocks by foreign investors weakened the Korean currency even further, adding more pressure on the uphill trend.¡±
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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