[THE INVESTOR] South Korea’s producer prices dropped slightly from a year earlier in August following a decline in prices of coal and petroleum products, central bank data showed on Sept. 21.

The producer price index for August came to 99.02, down 1.7 percent from the same month last year, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.

Producer prices serve as an indicator of future consumer inflation.

The August index marked a slight increase from a revised 98.91 in the previous month.

Prices of manufactured goods lost 0.4 percent on-month in August, while prices of agricultural and fisheries gained 6.6 percent on-month in August.

Utility prices, including electricity and water, rose 0.4 percent from the previous month, according to the BOK.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)