Gasoline prices nationwide have risen for one month but are expected to drop again next week.

According to Opinet, an oil price information website run by the Korea National Oil Corporation, the national average price of regular gasoline rose four-point-four won to just over one-thousand-544 won per liter in the second week of December. 

Prices have been slightly edging up each week since the third week of November.

But this trend was bucked in capital Seoul on Thursday when prices fell from the previous day.

An industry official noted that fluctuations in global oil costs are typically reflected first in Seoul where consumption is the highest.

He forecast that as global prices began to head south from the first week of December, domestic prices will also follow suit from next week.

Meanwhile, the cost of Dubai crude, which South Korea mainly imports, gained two dollars and ten cents this week to reach 63 dollars 80 cents a barrel.

The Korea National Oil Corporation said that global prices are up this week on the back of the phase one U.S.-China trade deal and decision by the OPEC Plus to further decrease output.

An industry official said we need to observe conditions for at least two more weeks to predict which way prices will go.