UK inflation rose unexpectedly to 4% in December.
UK consumer prices rose unexpectedly in December due to a new tax on tobacco products and calls for interest rate cuts from the Bank of England.
The Consumer Price Index, which measures the prices of various goods and services, rose 4.0% from a 3.9% increase in November last year, Statistics Korea announced Wednesday.
Economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal expected inflation to moderate to 3.8%.
Core inflation, which takes out volatility in energy and food prices, was 5.1% in December, above the headline rate, flat from November and ahead of consensus expectations of 4.9%.
The biggest contributor to the monthly change in inflation came from cigarettes after the government announced tax increases in its most recent budget. The ONS said prices rose 4.1% from November to December.
Write to Ed Frankl at edward.frankl@wsj.com.
