FX.co ★ South Korea Producer Inflation Hits 3rd-Year High in March

South Korea’s producer prices rose 4.1% year-on-year in March 2026, a sharp acceleration from February and the fastest increase in three years, underscoring mounting inflationary pressure in the industrial sector. Prices climbed in manufacturing (5.9% vs. 2.3% in February), services (3.1% vs. 3.2%), and agricultural, forestry, and marine products (0.5% vs. 4.5%), indicating a shift in the inflationary burden away from food and toward energy and chemical manufacturing. In contrast, prices for electricity, gas, and water remained in contraction at -1.1%, unchanged from the previous month. On a monthly basis, producer prices increased 1.6% in March, well above the 0.6% rise recorded in February.