A fuel price board at a gas station in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap
The government froze the price ceilings on fuel products for the third consecutive time Thursday, in the face of continued volatility in global energy prices.
The move is expected to help lower the living costs for ordinary people.
Maximum prices for regular gasoline, diesel and kerosene supplied to gas stations by local oil refineries will remain unchanged at 1,934 won ($1.33), 1,923 won and 1,530 won per liter, respectively, for the next two weeks, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources.
The government sets maximum prices for fuel products every two weeks under the price cap system introduced in mid-March to stabilize domestic fuel prices.
The ministry said it has decided to maintain the current price caps not only to help consumers but to suppress inflationary pressures.
Korea's consumer prices rose 2.6 percent from a year earlier in April, posting the fastest year-on-year growth rate in 21 months, mainly driven by an increase in fuel prices, according to government data.
Last month, the price of petroleum products jumped by 22 percent year-on-year, marking the sharpest increase since July 2022.
In particular, the government stressed that high fuel prices put financial pressure on the working class, including cargo truck drivers, couriers, farmers and fishermen.
Regarding the supply of crude and industrial materials, the ministry said Korea is expected to import around 210 million barrels of crude from May to July, which account for around 80 percent of the pre-war level for the period. The crude will mostly be shipped from Saudi Arabia, the United States and the United Arab Emirates.
Source: Korea Times News
