Consumer prices in South Korea were up 03 percent on month in May, Statistics Korea said on Friday.
That was shy of expectations for an increase of 0.5 percent following the 0.2 percent increase in April.
On a yearly basis, inflation rose 3.3 percent - in line with forecasts and down from 3.7 percent in the previous month.
Core CPI, which excludes volatile food costs, gained 0.4 percent on month and 4.3 percent on year after adding 0.4 percent on month and 4.6 percent on year in April.
