The Bank of Korea said on Wednesday an AI-driven boom in the semiconductor
sector — marked by exceptionally large bonus payouts at some chipmakers and
major tech firms — could complicate the inflation outlook by prompting broader
wage demands. If bonus-driven wage gains spill beyond tech, they would lift
consumer demand and corporate costs and, together with rising energy prices, add
to inflationary pressure. While broad wage acceleration has not yet
materialized, the central bank urged close monitoring of outsized bonus payments
and rising wage demands as policymakers work to prevent transient supply shocks
from becoming persistent inflation.
