After the Middle East crisis sent gasoline retail prices soaring, the government launched special inspections targeting gas stations and said it would consider setting a price ceiling for petroleum products.
Koo Yun-cheol, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, on the 5th at the third meeting of the task force (TF) on special management of essential consumer prices, said, "Related ministries, including the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, should swiftly review designating a maximum price for petroleum retail prices under the Petroleum and Alternative Fuel Business Act."
Under Article 23 of the Petroleum and Alternative Fuel Business Act (Petroleum Business Act), the Minister of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI) may set a maximum petroleum retail price when petroleum prices fluctuate markedly to stabilize people's livelihoods.
According to the government, the gasoline retail price jumped 54 won (3.1%) per liter in a single day on the 4th. Diesel rose 94 won (5.7%). As of the 3rd, international crude prices had gained 4.7% from the previous day.
Deputy Prime Minister Koo said, "Korea currently holds sufficient strategic petroleum reserves that far exceed international recommendations," and added, "Given the lag in reflecting international prices domestically, this is by no means a point at which they would materially affect domestic prices, and raising prices excessively to reap windfall profits is a shameless act that eats away at people's livelihoods."
The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI) on the same day held a "petroleum supply and market review meeting," checked price conditions with refiners and gas stations, and asked them to refrain from raising prices. It also decided to run a pan-ministerial joint inspection team intensively with the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC), the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the National Tax Service.
Starting on the 6th, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI) plans to conduct more than 2,000 special inspections per month through the Korea Petroleum Management Institute, targeting gas stations at high risk of illegal petroleum distribution. It will select high-risk gas stations—those with supply-demand discrepancies, excessive or insufficient transaction volumes, multiple consumer reports, and the like—and carry out undercover crackdowns using unmarked inspection vehicles, checks during vulnerable late-night and holiday hours, and focused distribution and quality inspections, including on illegal kerosene sales.
Yang Ki-uk, head of the Office of Industrial Resource Security at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI), said, "People are deeply concerned about the sudden rise in oil prices," and added, "We will respond strictly to illegal distribution and unfair transaction practices that seek to use public anxiety as a means of profit."