South Korea: Sugar industry to refrain from raising sugar prices in an all-out effort to control prices before the general election

A view of the sugar counter at a large supermarket. yunhap news The sugar industry announced its stance, “Despite the recent increase in international sugar prices, we will not increase prices for the time being considering the cost burden.” The industry appears to be responding preemptively to the government's all-out effort to control prices in an effort to appease public sentiment ahead of next year's general election. The Korea Sugar Association issued a statement on the 19th saying, “We have decided to refrain from raising sugar prices as much as possible until early next year.” Recently, the international sugar price is about 35% higher than last year, and the price of raw sugar, the raw material for sugar, has also increased by 48%. This is due to poor sugarcane harvest due to abnormal weather. As drought occurred in India, the main sugar cane producing country, and production decreased, India restricted sugar exports, and crops in Thailand and Australia were also ...