Gasoline Prices at Gas Stations Rise for 5 Consecutive Weeks... Nationwide Average 1,554.1 Won

According to Opinet, the oil price information service of Korea National Oil Corporation, the average retail price of gasoline nationwide in the third week of March was 1,517.4 KRW per liter, up 18.8 KRW from the previous week. This is the first time in a year since the second week of March last year that the weekly average gasoline price has exceeded 1,500 KRW. A gas station in downtown Seoul on the 21st. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Gasoline prices at gas stations nationwide continued to rise for the fifth consecutive week.

According to the Korea National Oil Corporation's oil price information service Opinet on the 5th, the average gasoline retail price at gas stations nationwide during the first week of June (May 31?June 3) recorded 1,554.1 KRW per liter, up 6.7 KRW from the previous week.

By region, Seoul, the highest-priced area, recorded 1,637.3 KRW per liter, which is 83.2 KRW higher than the national average. Daegu, the lowest-priced area, recorded 1,522.4 KRW per liter, 31.8 KRW lower than the national average.

By brand, GS Caltex was the most expensive at 1,561.6 KRW per liter, while budget gas stations were the cheapest at 1,527.7 KRW per liter.

The nationwide diesel retail price at gas stations also rose by 6.6 KRW from the previous week to 1,351 KRW per liter.

International oil prices rose last week amid expectations of global economic recovery. The average price of Dubai crude oil, which serves as the benchmark for crude oil imported into Korea, was $69.1 per barrel, up $2.2 from the previous week. International gasoline prices rose by $0.6 to $75.6 per barrel, and international automotive diesel prices increased by $1.8 to $76.6 per barrel.

The Korea National Oil Corporation explained, "International oil prices rose this week due to improvements in major countries' manufacturing indicators, OPEC Plus's plan to maintain the scale of production cuts, and improved mobility indicators centered on the US and Europe."