The government will beef up the monitoring of gasoline prices to prevent excessive pump price increases amid rising global oil prices stemming from the Middle East crisis, the finance ministry said Friday. A government-wide gas prices inspection team and other relevant entities will launch intensive on-site inspections at gas stations nationwide against possible excessive price hikes, as the government announced the decision to extend the tax cut on fuel consumption by an additional two months through the end of June, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. Dubai crude, the country's benchmark, has been on a constant rise in recent months, reaching US$89.87 per barrel in April from $78.85 in January, $80.88 in February and $84.18 in March amid escalating tensions in the Middle East and other geopolitical uncertainties. Concerns about a wider conflict in the Middle East have grown following Iran's drone and missile attack against Israel last week in response to a suspected Israeli attack on Iran' s embassy in Syria. Foreign media reports on Thursday (U.S. time) said Israeli missiles have hit a site in Iran. South Korea depends on imports for most of its energy needs, and rising oil prices have added inflationary pressures. Source: Yonhap News Agency