SEJONG (Yonhap News) ― The government will work hard to maintain the current stabilizing trend of inflation in a bid to help the livelihoods of ordinary working people struggling with the rising cost of daily life, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

Thanks to the government’s efforts to keep inflation under control, the country’s consumer prices have stayed in the 2 percent range but the costs of daily life for low and middle income earners remain relatively high, the ministry said in a report after holding a price stabilization meeting in Seoul.

The meeting is the first of its kind held by the government since President Park Geun-hye took office on Monday for her five-year term.

The ministry said that heavy snow and a protracted cold wave sent farm product prices soaring, while processed food makers and public service providers are rushing to raise their product prices.

This could disrupt the current stabilizing trend in consumer prices, it worried.

“We will work hard to consolidate the currently stabilizing trend of inflation and place our focus on the costs related to the daily life of ordinary people,” the ministry said.

In a related move, the government will unload its stockpile of agricultural goods in the market, while expanding imports of farm goods to better cope with any supply disruptions.

It will also beef up its monitoring on any attempts by processed food makers to push for unwarranted price hikes.

The country’s antitrust watchdog will join the efforts by toughening its crackdown on price rigging and other steps to drive up product prices without justifiable reasons, the ministry said.

The ministry also noted that public service fee hikes will be restricted or minimized, adding that it will have negotiations with regional governments to prevent excessive service cost increases in areas beyond Seoul. (Yonhap News)