The price index for analgesics is rising steeply.
According to Statistics Korea, as of the end of June, the consumer price index (CPI) for analgesics (2015=100) was 131.29, up 2.51p from the ends of the first quarter (end of March), 3.06p from the end of last year, and 7.26p from the same period the previous year.
This is a steep rise compared to the overall price index, which has risen by 0.23p at the end of the first quarter, 1.82p at the end of last year, and 2.52p since June of last year.
In particular, the CPI for analgesics increased by 2.51p only in the second quarter when the COVID-19 vaccination began, and it is the only drug among pharmaceutical products that has increased by more than 1p in this period. It is the second to surpass 130 after antitussive.
Antitussive is also on the rise. The CPI at the end of June was 134.69, the highest among the others.
Compared to the same period last year, it rose 3.30p, the second-highest increase after painkillers, but the increase in the second quarter was 0.38p, not much higher than other products.
Following the antitussive, the CPI for vitamin product increased 2.00p YoY, 1.59p for gastrointestinal medicine, 1.55p for oriental medicine, 1.47p for anti-inflammatory drug, 1.10p for oral disinfectant, 1.04p for digestant, 0.57p for skin disease medication, and 0.12p for cold medicine.
On the other hand, probiotics, hospital medication, and prescription drug fell 0.22p, 0.41p, and 0.46p. The CPI for probiotics has been fluctuating from the 120-point level, and hospital medication and prescription drug are on a steady decline.
The price index of vitamin product, which rose once in May after recovering to 100 level in February, gained slightly again in June.
At the end of June, the CPI for antitussive was the highest with 134.69, followed by analgesics with 131.29, probiotics with 120.60, and digestant with 120.18.
Oriental drug came close to 120 level with 119.95, oral disinfectant at 115.84, gastrointestinal medicine at 114.72, skin disease medication at 113.10, anti-inflammatory drug at 112.42, and cold medicine at 111.60, up more than 10% since 2015.
Vitamin product exceeded 100 with 101.48, and prescription drug and hospital medication fell below 100 with 93.92 and 92.86.
The overall price index for pharmaceutical product stood at 103.69, up 0.48p from a year ago, 0.34p since the end of last year, and 0.26p inf the second quarter.
