S. Korea`s producer price growth slows in October

SEOUL, Nov. 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's producer prices grew at a slower pace in October than a month earlier due to falls in oil and raw material costs, the central bank said Monday, giving weight to its rate cut for November.

The producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, grew 10.7
percent on-year in October, slowing from an 11.3 percent gain the previous month,
according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The country's producer prices dipped 0.3 percent on-month in October after
falling an identical 0.3 percent in September, it added.
The data comes as the BOK slashed its key interest rate Friday for the third time
in a month to bolster the slowing economy. In a monthly policy meeting, the BOK
lowered the benchmark seven-day repo rate by a quarter percentage point to 4
percent, the lowest level since 2006, cutting a combined 1.25 percentage point in
the span of a month.
The South Korean economy grew 0.6 percent on-quarter in the third quarter -- the
slowest growth in four years -- due to faltering domestic demand and lagging
export growth. Exports account for about 50 percent of economic growth.
South Korea's consumer prices grew 4.8 percent on-year in October, decelerating
from a 5.1 percent advance in September, as oil and raw material prices declined.
However, they breached the BOK's target range of 2.5-3.5 percent for the 11th
straight month.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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