South Korea’s inflation slows in March

Seoul – South Korea’s inflation eased in March as the government made efforts to curb price rises, official figures showed Monday.

Statistics Korea said the consumer price index increased 2.6 percent in March compared with a year earlier, slowing from a 3.1 percent rise in February. The index lost 0.1 percentage points in March compared to February.

Core inflation, which strips out volatile oil and food costs, grew 1.9 percent from a year earlier compared to a 2.5 percent increase the previous month.

The government forecasts 2012 inflation at 3.2 percent while the central bank sees it at 3.3 percent.