South Korea's producer prices fell for the third month in a row in December due to slipping crude oil prices. 

According to the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, the producer price index, a barometer of future consumer inflation, came to 104-point-09 last month, down half a percent from a month earlier.

The reading declined by point-four percent in October and point-seven percent in November last year. 

It is the first time since June 2017 that the index lost ground for three straight months. 

The drop is attributed to declining crude oil prices. The average price of Dubai crude, South Korea's benchmark, decreased 12-point-six percent on-month in December.