<Anchor> This



is a friendly economic time.

Today (the 4th) I will be with reporter Han Ji-yeon.

Recently, there has been an increase in the range of fuel tax cuts.

At the same time, I think a lot of people think that the price of oil is going to drop a little bit, and there are rumors that it has fallen, but it is not easy to feel it when you actually put oil in it.

Why is that?

You don't feel it, now? 



<Reporter>



Yes, it is.

From the 1st of last month, the fuel tax was reduced by 30%.

It is 10% lower than the previous 20%, and in this case, the gasoline price should be 83 won cheaper per liter.



However, I also put oil in yesterday, and there was not much difference from before.



When I looked at how much gasoline prices were cut across the country, it was 1,975 won per liter right before the additional fuel tax cut, so if you subtract 83 won, it should be around 1,800 won.



But when I checked it last night, it was 1,937 won.



The price has gone down by 38 won, and although the price is showing a downward trend, it is less than half of the 83 won that should be cut, so naturally, from the consumer's point of view, "it's been cut" doesn't feel right.



<Anchor>



Why are you like this?



<Reporter>



The fuel tax is applied from the factory price at the refinery.



What this means is that 80% of gas stations in Korea are private gas stations.

There's probably some oil left in the storage tank here that we bought before the gas tax cut. 



You have to sell all of this in order to receive and sell the cheaper oil that has been reflected in the fuel tax cut from the refinery.



Macro factors also seem to play a role here.

Recently, the international oil price has surpassed $100 per barrel.

Also, the won-dollar exchange rate is approaching 1,270 won these days. 



Since expensive oil is being brought in at a higher price, the future fuel tax cut can be offset.

This will make it more difficult to feel the drop in oil prices.



<Anchor>



That's right.

Anyway, it means that it takes a little more time to feel the oil price drop now.

So, is there any other way to put oil in a little cheaper in the meantime?



<Reporter>



Yes, there is a time lag of about two weeks considering the time the gas station runs out of stock and the delivery time of oil.



Then the calculation comes out that you will not be able to feel the price drop until the middle of this month, but it's hard to wait just for this.



If you use a gas station directly managed by four domestic refineries or a thrifty gas station, you can immediately refuel at a price that is reduced by the reduced fuel tax.

However, the number is rather small.



Directly managed gas stations nationwide account for 6.7% of all gas stations, with only 760, so accessibility is not good.

Also, they are often in expensive neighborhoods, so the actual retail price may not be low.



If you want to see where the cheapest gas station is near where you are, you can check it on a platform called 'Ofinet' of the Korea National Oil Corporation.



<Anchor>



I've been into this platform called Opinet a few times, and it's pretty good, information.

If you use it, it seems that you can use it even a little cheaper.

Finally, let's take a look at some other news.

Recently, there are a lot of discount events held at convenience stores, but you said that certain discount events are a bit controversial?



<Reporter>



Yes, it is controversial because convenience stores decided to include Japanese beer in the imported beer event starting this month.



This is the first Japanese beer discount event in 2 years and 10 months. In July 2019, due to Japanese export restrictions, we also started a boycott of Japanese products, the so-called 'No Japan'.



At that time, almost no Japanese beer was sold, so the number one imported beer was pushed down to the tenth place.



However, as the number of 'home drinks' increased due to the corona virus, there was a gradual recovery.

Imports in the first quarter of this year also increased by 23% compared to last year.



In addition, import distributors put up strong sales incentives, and all four convenience stores held an event to sell 4 cans of Japanese beer at 11,000 won.



Recently, there has been a shortage of Pokemon bread, which is paying royalties to Japanese companies, and there are many people who recall that the chief financial officer of Uniqlo at the time of Noh Japan said, "The boycott of Korea is not going to be long."