<Anchor> The
government announced its economic policy direction yesterday (16th) and raised the inflation rate this year to 4.7%.
He also announced that he would cut the fuel tax by the end of the year to curb inflation.
Electricity rates are likely to rise next month.
Gas rates are expected to rise as well.
This is Reporter Jung Joon-ho.
<Reporter>
A coin karaoke room in Jongno, Seoul.
I always have the karaoke device turned on because I don't know when guests will come, so my electricity bill is not cheap.
[Coin karaoke president: In our case, (electricity bill) costs about 60 (10,000 won) per month...
If we raise it like this while sales have not increased much, our burden will inevitably increase.]
There were only rumors of an increase, but KEPCO submitted a rate hike proposal to the government yesterday.
The request is to raise the fuel cost adjustment unit price by 3 won among the components of the electricity bill.
If the government approves the increase, electricity rates will increase by more than 1,000 won for a four-person household from next month, including VAT.
KEPCO is in a position to raise rates because of its accumulated deficit.
In the first quarter of this year, KEPCO's electricity sales unit price rose only 2.4% compared to the same period last year, but the wholesale unit price at which KEPCO purchases electricity more than doubled due to the surge in international energy prices.
Therefore, KEPCO posted a loss of nearly 8 trillion won in the first quarter of this year alone, which is 2 trillion won more than the total loss last year.
KEPCO also demanded that the upper limit of the adjusted fuel cost be raised from the current 3 won per quarter.
Gas rates are also expected to rise by 0.67 won per megajoule next month.
There is also a forecast that inflation will rise to the 6% level in the second half of the year if the suppressed utility rate is raised.