Seoul: Liquefied natural gas imports by South Korea rose 16 per cent in June from a year earlier as the average price paid for the fuel climbed 24 per cent.

The world’s second-biggest LNG buyer purchased 2.45 million tonnes of the cleaner-burning fuel in June, compared with 2.12 million tonnes a year earlier, data on the Korea Customs Service’s website showed.

South Korea paid $2.12 billion (Dh7.8 billion) for purchases in June.