Won-denominated import prices rose 1.7 percent from August, marking their first monthly increase in four months, according to preliminary data released Friday by the Bank of Korea (BOK).
Prices were 17.6 percent higher than a year earlier, accelerating from a 15.9 percent increase in August.
The rebound came even as the average dollar-won exchange rate fell 3.4 percent to 1,359.00 won per dollar in September from 1,406.30 in August.
Dubai crude, meanwhile, averaged $113.71 a barrel, up 28.1 percent from $88.75 in August and 62.4 percent from a year earlier.
Import prices measured in contract currencies rose 4.9 percent from the previous month, compared with the 1.7 percent increase in won terms, showing that the stronger currency absorbed part of the increase in overseas costs.
Raw-material import prices jumped 9.6 percent from August, led by a 10.8 percent increase in mining products. Crude oil import prices rose 21.6 percent over the month and 54.4 percent from a year earlier.
Intermediate-goods prices fell 1.7 percent, while capital and consumer goods prices declined 2.4 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.
The BOK said oil-price movements have a substantial impact on import prices because mining products, including crude oil, carry a relatively large weight in the index.
The central bank said pressure could ease as both the dollar-won exchange rate and international oil prices had fallen from September levels through mid-October. Heightened tensions in the Middle East, however, could renew upward pressure on import prices already posting double-digit annual gains.
Export prices moved in the opposite direction. Won-denominated export prices fell 0.8 percent from August for a second consecutive monthly decline as the stronger currency pulled down prices across most categories despite gains in petroleum products.
On a contract-currency basis, export prices rose 2.6 percent from the previous month. In won terms, they remained 40.9 percent higher than a year earlier, extending their annual increase to a 13th consecutive month.
Semiconductors remained a major driver of the annual increase. DRAM export prices surged 239.5 percent from a year earlier, while flash-memory prices climbed 235.9 percent.
Export volumes also strengthened sharply.
The export volume index jumped 32.1 percent from a year earlier, extending its run of increases to 11 consecutive months. The gain was the largest since a 42.0 percent increase in January 2010.
Computer, electronic and optical products, including semiconductors and memory devices, along with semiconductor-manufacturing equipment led the increase.
The export value index surged 89.2 percent from a year earlier. Import volumes increased 11.1 percent, while the import value index rose 26.9 percent.
Korea’s net barter terms of trade — the ratio of export prices to import prices — improved 25.4 percent from a year earlier. That was slower than August’s record 27.1 percent increase as rising oil prices accelerated import-cost growth.
The income terms of trade index, which measures how much the country can import with its total export earnings, climbed a record 65.7 percent from a year earlier, surpassing August’s 59.9 percent increase. Stronger export volumes and improved net barter terms of trade together boosted Korea’s purchasing power.
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