South Korea’s annual inflation slows for second consecutive month

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SEOUL — Consumer price inflation in South Korea slowed in September, data showed Wednesday, a week ahead of the central bank’s monetary policy meeting and amid growing talk of an interest rate hike. higher interest than usual.

The consumer price index (CPI) rose 5.6% in September from the same month a year ago, according to data from Statistics Korea, slowing for the second month in a row. In August, inflation fell to 5.7%, the first slowdown in seven months.

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September’s reading was the slowest rate in four months and slightly below economists’ median forecast of 5.7%, although forecasts varied widely.

The CPI rose 0.3% on a monthly basis, slower than a 0.4% gain seen in a Reuters poll, but rebounding from a 0.1% drop the previous month.

The core consumer price index, which excludes volatility in food and energy prices, fell month-on-month for the first time in a year, although its annual rate was accelerated to 4.1% from 4.0% in August. (Reporting by Choonsik Yoo and Jihoon Lee; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Sam Holmes)