South Korea import and export prices continued to drop at a fast clip in December largely due to a plunge in energy and raw material prices, central bank data showed Wednesday.

Export prices, in terms of local currency, dropped 6 percent from a year earlier last month, slowing from an 8.6 percent on-year decline in the previous month, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.

The December tally marks a 0.3 percent rise from the previous month, but the on-month increase was largely attributed to the weakening of the South Korean won against the U.S. dollar.

In December, the average won-dollar rate came to 1,172.24 won per dollar, down from 1,151.97 won in the previous month, according to the BOK.

For all of 2015, the country's export prices slipped 5.2 percent on-year.

Import prices also continued to drop at a fast rate, plunging 11.9 percent on-year in December.

The cuts in both import and export prices were attributed to a sharp drop in global prices of raw materials.

The average price of Dubai crude, South Korea's benchmark, tumbled 16.1 percent on-month to $34.92 per barrel in December, the BOK said.

In 2015, the country's import prices plunged by an estimated 15.3 percent from a year earlier. (Yonhap)