New data finds that the cost of popular and traditionally inexpensive meals all soared sharply last year amid the upward trend of global inflationary pressure.
According to the Korea Consumer Agency on Wednesday, the average cost in Seoul of eight key meals popular when dining out surged up to 13-point-eight percent last December compared to last January.
The price of the Korean-Chinese noodle dish jajangmyeon saw the highest growth of 13-point-eight percent to stand at an average of six-thousand-569 won a bowl, while the price for 200 grams of pork belly stood at 19-thousand-31 won, an increase of 12 percent.
Gimbap, a key barometer of consumer inflation due to its status as a cheap, ubiquitous staple food, came to three-thousand-100 won last month, increasing by nearly 12 percent.
A bowl of cold buckwheat noodles, traditional chicken soup known as samgyetang, kimchi stew with rice, the rice dish bibimbap and kalguksu, or knife-cut noodles, were among the remaining key food items that saw a surge in prices.
According to Statistics Korea, the overall price of dining out climbed seven-point-seven percent in 2022, the highest in three decades, while inflation stood at five-point-one percent, or the highest in 24 years.
Source: KBS World Radio