On the 16th, at a large supermarket in Seoul, American beef was on sale. Reporter Kim Jae-myeong base@donga.com Due to the rise in logistics costs and high interest rates, the price of American beef is increasing, rapidly narrowing the price gap with domestic beef. As the import unit price of cheap imported food ingredients such as beef rises, concerns are raised that the burden on dining table prices may increase. According to the Animal Products Quality Evaluation Service on the 16th, the price difference per 100g between domestic beef ribs (1+ grade) and American beef ribs (frozen) this year was 2,719 won. In 2024, it was 4,062 won. In 2024, the price of American beef ribs was half the price of domestic beef, but now it has narrowed to about 61%. This is because the price of American beef has risen faster than domestic beef. American short ribs (refrigerated) rose 8.6% from 4,463 won in the first quarter of last year (January to March) to 4,848 won in the first quarter of this year, and in particular, chuck eye roll (refrigerated), which is popular with consumers, surged 33.4% from 2,881 won to 3,846 won during the same period. Meanwhile, the average price of domestic beef sirloin rose 9.6% from 12,680 won in the first quarter of last year to 13,891 won in the first quarter of this year.