[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] As food prices continue to soar daily, vegetable prices are also rising sharply due to poor crop yields caused by drought. In particular, it is forecasted that the price of baechu (Korean cabbage) will double compared to last year within this month.
According to the 'Agricultural Outlook Leafy Root Vegetables July Report' from the Agricultural Outlook Center of the Korea Rural Economic Institute on the 2nd, the wholesale price of baechu is expected to reach 10,500 KRW per 10 kg this month. This means it will be more than 90.9% higher than the same month last year. It is also 39% higher than the average year.
As of the 24th of last month, the wholesale price of baechu per 10 kg was already close to the forecast at an average of 10,480 KRW. The institute expects that the shipment volume of baechu will decrease by 7.9% compared to last year next month, continuing this price increase trend.
With the decrease in shipment volume, the institute also expects the price of carrots to rise by 94.7% compared to last year, reaching around 37,000 KRW per 20 kg this month. The wholesale price of cabbage is expected to increase by 27.8% to around 6,000 KRW per 8 kg, and the wholesale price of radish is forecasted to rise by 21.4% to around 14,000 KRW per 20 kg.
The sharp rise in vegetable prices is analyzed to be due to the combined effects of soaring international oil prices caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and poor crop yields due to the recent heatwave. The industry expects that as the monsoon season fully begins, the supply of some vegetables will become more difficult, and the price increase trend will continue for some time.
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