{
  "id": 109311,
  "title": "South Korea inflation cools, but back-to-back rate hike not ruled out",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/03/south-korea-inflation-cools-but-back-to-back-rate-hike-not-ruled-out",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-08-03T23:03:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Channel News Asia",
    "slug": "channel-news-asia",
    "url": "https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/south-korea-inflation-cools-back-back-rate-hike-not-ruled-out-6296371"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "South Korea's consumer inflation slowed to a three-month low in July, falling below market forecasts due to a decrease in oil prices, according to data released by the Ministry of Finance and Statistics on Tuesday. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased 2.8% year-over-year in July, compared to a 3.2% rise in June. This was lower than the expected 3.0% jump, according to a Reuters poll of economists. The index experienced its first monthly decrease in eight months, dropping 0.2%, as petroleum product prices fell 5.5%. Market participants did not rule out a potential back-to-back rate hike this month, despite the cooling inflation. Vice Finance Minister Lee Hyoung-il noted that upward price pressures, including concerns over the Middle East conflict, remain a concern. The finance ministry estimated that nationwide fuel price caps reduced inflation by 0.3 percentage points last month. Additionally, there will be a one-off factor raising inflation by 0.8 percentage points in August due to base effects from temporary mobile fee discounts from the previous year. The Bank of Korea, which targets 2% inflation in the medium term, will closely monitor price conditions, as core inflation is expected to stay high due to high oil prices and growing domestic demand from record chip industry profits. Although the market seems to price in a lower likelihood of a rate hike in August, it remains higher than 50%, according to an analyst at Korea Investment Securities. The central bank may wait if inflation stabilizes around 2%, but with inflation already at 3%, it could take a proactive step. South Korea's policy-sensitive three-year benchmark bond yield fell 2.3 basis points to 3.719% in morning trading. The core CPI, excluding volatile food and energy prices, rose 2.6% year-over-year in July, marking the largest increase since December 2023.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Channel News Asia",
        "title": "South Korea's central bank to buy gold from domestic producers",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/03/south-koreas-central-bank-to-buy-gold-from-domestic-producers",
        "published": "2026-08-03T12:23:05.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}