Prices of fruit imports jump on weak local currency

SEOUL, Oct. 2 (Yonhap) -- Prices of several imported fruits surged in September due to a weak local currency, posing a threat to the government's anti-inflation efforts, industry sources said Sunday.
According to the sources, market prices of imported grapes, blueberries and pineapples jumped some 10 percent from a month ago, driven up by the won's recent steep descent.
The South Korean currency fell more than 12 percent to the U.S. dollar in September compared with two months ago on global recovery woes, according to data compiled by the Bank of Korea.
"The volatile currency exchange rate influences the import prices of fresh goods," said an official from a local retailer. "The upward trend will take a heavy toll on consumer prices as well."
Prices of pineapples and bananas will go up further later this month as temporary tariff quotas on the fruits will be lifted, adding an additional 30 percent tariff rate to their prices.
The government has applied tariff quotas to bananas and pineapples for two months to give a lower tariff rate to a certain portion of the imported products in efforts to tackle the nation's runaway inflation. The tax-cut program ends in mid-October.
South Korea's consumer prices jumped 5.3 percent in August from a year earlier, the fastest increase in three years. It is also much higher than the government's annual inflation target of 4 percent.
brk@yna.co.kr
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