Vice Minister Ki Jae: "Stable Prices for Chuseok Seasonal Goods... Full Effort on Supply and Demand Management"

Kim Beom-seok, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, on the 23rd, a month before Chuseok, urged efforts to stabilize the supply and demand of Chuseok seasonal products as prices of some vegetables are high due to the prolonged heatwave.

On the same day, Vice Minister Kim held the 31st Vice Ministerial Meeting on Prices at the Government Seoul Office to review the price trends and supply and demand management plans for Chuseok seasonal products. The meeting was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Financial Services Commission, and Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission.

Vice Minister Kim evaluated, "Among recent major seasonal products, apples and pears have good harvests, and prices are stabilizing after the shipment of new fruits, while livestock product prices are also stable," adding, "For napa cabbage, radish, and facility-grown vegetables, prices are high due to the prolonged heatwave, so please mobilize all available means by item to stabilize supply and demand."

The government is responding comprehensively to stabilize napa cabbage prices in August. So far, the government has released up to 400 tons per day of available stock through shipment control and stockpile release, and plans to further expand supply by encouraging private shipments through support for transportation and labor costs.

Starting next week, the supply conditions of summer napa cabbage are expected to improve as the volume from Anbandegi, the largest domestic summer napa cabbage production area, is shipped. Lettuce damaged by the recent monsoon is being replanted and shipped, and cucumber shipments are increasing as sunlight has recently recovered despite poor weather conditions in production areas, so prices are expected to stabilize from late August.