South Korea's consumer price growth is likely to hit a record low level this year due mainly to declines in prices of agricultural and petroleum products.

According to Statistics Korea, the country's consumer prices edged up point-five percent over the first eight months of the year, marking the lowest figure since the statistics agency started compiling related data in 1965.

The figure is below the previous record of point-six percent growth posted for the same period in 1999 and 2015.

The Finance Ministry and Statistics Korea expected the inflation rate will remain lower than last year for the next two to three months before recovering to the range of point-five percent to one percent near the end of the year.

Accordingly, annual consumer price growth is anticipated to post below point-five percent this year.

South Korea posted an annual consumer price growth below one percent two times, in 1999 and 2015, when the economy was hit hard by the Asian financial crisis and the outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome(MERS), respectively.