Shafaqna English– In July, South Korea’s headline consumer inflation decelerated to its weakest pace in three months, undershooting market forecasts primarily due to declining crude oil prices, yet monetary authorities continued to express caution about lingering upside risks to prices, while financial markets maintained the possibility of a consecutive interest rate increase – following any move in the prior month – as a live option for the central bank’s upcoming policy meeting.
The Ministry of Data and Statistics reported on Tuesday(4 Aug 2026) that the consumer price index for July registered a 2.8% year-over-year increase, following a 3.2% rise in June, a result that came in beneath the 3.0% median projection gathered by Reuters from a panel of economists, underscoring the impact of lower energy costs and softer domestic demand on the headline figure.