SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — Popular Korean snacks in the winter are rising in price, further discouraging consumer spending in South Korea.
As recently as last year, 1,000 won (US$0.70) was enough to buy three fish-shaped buns, called “bungeoppang” in Korean, in downtown Seoul.
Now, 1,000 won buys only one or two of them.
The price of “hotteok,” a sort of Korean pancake filled with sweet brown sugar which cost 1,000 won per piece, has gone up to 1,500 won.
The price hikes are largely attributed to the rising price of flour, red beans, cooking oil and other ingredients amid rising consumer prices.
The price of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) used to cook buns and pancakes increased from 725 won per liter in May 2020 to 1,163 won in April of this year.
“We used to like fish buns and pancakes because they were cheap. Now, even they’ve become harder to afford,” said a 26-year-old office worker surnamed Choo.
Image Credit: Yonhap / Namwon City Office / photonews@koreabizwire.com
