“It was 10,000 won just to buy one apple and one pear… I’m scared of shopping for Lunar New Year” = Korean report

Ms. Lee (58), a housewife living in Busan, recently went shopping at a large supermarket ahead of Lunar New Year, but hesitated for a while at the fruit section. I came here because they said they were selling it cheaply.
Three apples for a memorial service cost 18,000 won (about 2,000 yen), and even the cheapest apples cost about 16,000 won (about 1,770 yen) for five. Mr. Lee said, ``It's been a long time since I celebrated Lunar New Year once a year.''
My children are coming back to my hometown for the first time in a while, so I want to feed them something delicious, but fruit is expensive and I don't feel like buying it.''She added, ``I came here with the intention of cooking as simple a meal as possible, but still...
"It easily exceeded 300,000 won (approximately 33,000 yen)." Lee is not alone in this problem. Recently, internet bulletin boards have been posting about preparing a memorial service meal in preparation for Lunar New Year.
There are many posts that say they are afraid of shopping for the purpose of buying. I'm already worried about the sharp rise in food prices, but now that demand is concentrated and prices are rising even more before the Lunar New Year...
This is because of concerns. Mr. Han, 38, who lives in Sejong City, said regretfully, ``This time I only bought one pear and one apple to offer for the memorial service.''
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock and Food, consumer prices for the top 10 products before the Lunar New Year were on average 2.6% lower than a year ago. But 10 apples
The price is 27,025 won (approximately 2,995 yen), an increase of 13% from last year. The price of 10 pears was 33,217 won (approximately 3,680 yen), an increase of 20.7%. other than this
The price of a head of Chinese cabbage has increased by 4.6%, and the price of a kilogram of chestnuts has increased by 2.6% from last year. On the other hand, 1 radish is -17.0%, 100g of beef (loin) is -9591 -1.8%, and pork (sam) is -1.8%.
There are some items whose prices have decreased, such as 100g of Gyeopsal (Gyeopsal) by -6.5%, 1kg of chicken by -1.0%, 30 eggs by -11.3%, and 1kg of jujube by -0.1%.
The problem is that the sensation that consumers actually experience with their skin is different. According to Korean price information, with Lunar New Year just three weeks away, the cost of a memorial service for a family of four will be 281,500 U.S. dollars if they use the traditional market.
(approx. 31,200 yen), an increase of 8.9% from last year and the highest price ever. If you buy it at a large supermarket, it costs 380,580 won (approximately 42,000 yen), which is 35.
2% higher and 5.8% higher than the same period last year. Another problem is that the high price of fruit is pushing up overall consumer prices. According to the National Statistics Agency, consumption in January
Consumer prices rose 2.8% from the same month last year, falling below the 2% level for the first time in six months. However, agricultural products rose by 15.4%, raising the overall price increase rate by 0.59%.
This is the second consecutive month of increase in the 15% range following last month (15.7%). Fresh food consists of items such as fresh fish, vegetables, and fruits whose prices fluctuate greatly depending on weather conditions and seasons.
The fresh food index increased by 14.4%. Fruit prices in particular rose by 28.5%, marking the first increase in 13 years since January 2011 (31.9%).
The Korean government is taking measures to stabilize prices by keeping the average price of seasonal products, which are often used during Lunar New Year, lower than the previous year.
Our policy is to do our best. Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance Choi Sang-mok said at the Emergency Economic Ministers' Meeting and Price-Related Ministers' Meeting held the day before, ``Policies to expand the supply of daily necessities and support discounts, etc.
"We will maintain the average price of Lunar New Year's seasonal products lower than the previous year," and added, "A budget of 10 billion yen to support discounts on agricultural and livestock products to stabilize prices of high-priced apples, pears, etc."
We will invest an additional won (approximately 1.1 billion yen)."