SoKor’s consumer prices fluctuate on virus-beaten demand

May had seen South Korea’s inflation rate dropping below zero for the first time in eight months, data showed on Tuesday. The decline was mainly from the novel coronavirus crisis dragging domestic demand and crude prices.

The consumer price index (CPI) fell 0.3% in May from a year earlier, placing below the 0.2% contraction rate predicted in a Reuters survey. This came to be the second time the index had dropped to an all-time low record ever since the country began releasing data in 1965.

On a monthly basis, the index recorded a 0.2% decline in May, hitting the forecast of a 0.2% drop. Moreover, the core CPI retained its level at 0.1% from a year earlier.

The export-dependent country has taken a step in stabilizing its financial markets should the United States and China dispute bring in more volatility.