SEOUL – South Korean consumers’ inflation expectations fell in April to the lowest in nearly a year, a central bank survey showed on Wednesday, while overall consumer sentiment hit a 10-month high.
The median of consumers’ inflation expectations for the next 12 months fell to 3.7 percent in April from 3.9 percent in March, according to the Bank of Korea’s monthly survey of consumers. It was the lowest reading since May 2022.
The consumer sentiment index, meanwhile, rose to 95.1 from 92.0 in the previous month, hitting the highest since June 2022.
Among its sub-indexes, the ones on current living conditions and future living conditions, which usually show high correlation with inflation, jumped by 1.1 points and 0.8 point, respectively, leading the headline figure higher.
South Korea’s consumer inflation eased to a one-year low in March, led by weaker oil prices, but a range of issues including worries about global growth, monetary policy and decisions by major oil producers have clouded the outlook.
The consumer price index was 4.2 percent higher in March than a year earlier, compared with gains of 4.8 percent in February and a 4.3 percent forecast in a Reuters survey. It was the slowest annual rise since March 2022. — Reuters
