Seoul, Aug 5 (IANS) South Korea’s consumer prices grew by more than 2 per cent for the second consecutive month in July, mainly driven by higher costs of industrial goods and services, government data showed on Tuesday.

Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, increased 2.1 per cent from a year earlier last month, according to the data from Statistics Korea.

Inflation had remained above the Bank of Korea’s 2 per cent target for four consecutive months through April before slowing to 1.9 per cent in May. It then edged up to 2.2 per cent in June, reports Yonhap news agency.

The statistics agency said the July gain was mainly due to the continued depreciation of the South Korean won, which pushed up import prices for industrial goods. A steady increase in service prices also added to inflationary pressure.

Among industrial goods, prices of processed food products jumped 4.1 per cent on-year, adding 0.35 percentage point to July’s overall inflation.

While agricultural product prices inched down 0.1 per cent from a year earlier, prices of livestock and fisheries products rose 3.5 per cent and 7.3 per cent, respectively.

Among fisheries products, mackerel prices jumped 12.6 per cent on-year.

In the agricultural sector, watermelon prices soared 20.7 percent, while other vegetables, such as lettuce, climbed 30 percent compared with the same period last year.

“Due to extreme heat and heavy rainfall, supply conditions were unfavorable, while demand rose sharply, leading to a significant increase in watermelon prices,” said Park Byung-seon, an official from the statistics agency. “Although fruit and vegetable prices were already high last year, the on-year increase this year is quite steep.”

In contrast, petroleum product prices fell 1 per cent on-year, reversing an increase in the previous month.

The service sector continued its upward trend, posting a 2.3 percent on-year gain.

Within the sector, utility costs, such as electricity and gas, increased 1.6 percent, while water charges advanced 2.7 percent.

Among personal services, prices for dining out rose 3.2 percent from a year earlier, and non-dining services climbed 3.5 percent.

Of the 39 items that make up dining out prices, 38 saw price increases in July, with only pizza remaining unchanged.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, went up 2 percent in July, matching the previous month’s increase.

—IANS

na/