<Anchor> This



is a friendly economic time.

Today (15th) is also with reporter Han Ji-yeon.

Yesterday, the Bank of Korea raised the benchmark interest rate and pointed to inflation as the reason for raising it.

If you look at what I will be discussing with a reporter today, I think you can really see how much inflation has risen recently.

Did the average price of kalguksu in Seoul exceed 8,000 won?



<Reporter>



Yes, because the average price of kalguksu was 7,000 won in October 2019.

But in 2 years and 5 months, it has risen over 1,000 won.



The average price of kalguksu last month was 8,115 won, which is 653 won more than a year ago, but this is the first time it has exceeded 8,000 won.



But this is also an average price.



This is the price list for a kalguksu restaurant in Seoul. Everything from kalguksu, dumplings, bibim noodles, and soybean noodles to wheat flour is used, but there is nothing under 10,000 won.



[Kalguksu restaurant owner: (How much is a bowl of kalguksu?) It’s 10,000 won now.

Food materials have gone up and labor costs are going up too...

.]



Not just kalguksu.

Both Jajangmyeon and Naengmyeon (naengmyeon), which are mainly used in wheat flour, were served.



The price of jajangmyeon in Seoul rose by 500 won from a year ago to over 5,800 won.

Naengmyeon goes up to 900 won and goes up to 10,000 won.



Well, some of the famous Pyongyang naengmyeon restaurants charge up to 15,000 won per bowl.



<Anchor>



So, you're saying that flour-based foods can rise further in the future?



<Reporter>



Yes, this is because wheat flour becomes more expensive in the second quarter. In the second quarter, mainly grains purchased in the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year come in.



But the war broke out in the first quarter.

Since the invasion of Ukraine in February, wheat prices have already reached an all-time high in March.

Looking at futures prices, they jumped nearly 140% compared to March of the normal year.



As such, it was analyzed that the price of edible grains imported into Korea in the second quarter rose by 10% compared to the first quarter and 44% compared to the same period of the previous year.

Also, the international wheat price this month is maintaining a high level.



If this happens, not only wheat flour, but also eating out expenses and processed foods such as sweets, bread and ramen will be under pressure to increase prices for a considerable period of time.



<Anchor> I



will.

I will continue to climb a lot more in the future.

When prices rise like this, our lives change a bit.

So as the price of flour goes up, the price of bread goes up a lot, and it seems like it will go up a lot in the future, so a lot of new bread-related products called 'dough' are coming out.



<Reporter>



Yes, at the bakery these days, a croissant costs 2,000 won.

Buying a few breads costs over 10,000 won, so it's hard to make them all from scratch.

I find a lot of pre-cooked dough.



As you can see on the screen, frozen dough is a frozen dough made in the shape of a bread, and it is baked in an oven or air fryer.



Also, there was a product that drastically reduced the cooking time, but as the price of flour has risen recently, more of this frozen dough is being sold.



Although there are differences by company, the sales volume in the first quarter of last year increased by 40-50% compared to the fourth quarter of last year.



It is said that the price of one piece of dough is one-sixth of that of the finished product, so it would be good to make simple bread at home.



<Anchor>



So far, we have mainly talked about flour-related foods.

Now let's talk about meat.

Have you noticed that domestic beef and pork sales have increased recently?



<Reporter>



Yes, because of the war's effects.

It is because there are many people who want to eat domestic products that have risen slightly because the prices of imported products are soaring as the exchange rate and freight costs are rising.



The difference is that American ribs increased by 54% this month compared to a year ago, but Korean beef sirloin increased by 7%.

The price of samgyeopsal increased by 8% for imported pork, but only 5% for domestic products.



Of course, domestic meat is still more expensive than imported meat, but you can't eat it at the same price as imported meat.



You can't miss this in the retail industry.



Recently, large marts have been doing a lot of discount events, such as special events for Korean beef.



That's why I'm thinking, 'Let's add some more money to eat Korean beef', but it is said that the sales of Korean beef at a large mart last month increased by 34% compared to the same period of the previous year.