South Korea May inflation weakest in 5 months, below forecast

SEOUL :South Korea’s consumer inflation slowed in May to the weakest pace in five months, government data showed on Wednesday, coming in below market expectations.

The consumer price index rose 1.9 per cent in May from a year earlier, after rising 2.1 per cent in April, according to Statistics Korea.

It was the weakest since December 2024 and lower than the median 2.1 per cent rise tipped in a Reuters poll of economists.

The Bank of Korea lowered interest rates last week for a fourth time in its current easing cycle to support an economic recovery clouded by U.S. tariffs, with four of its seven board members open to more cuts in the next three months.