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Statistics Korea said the consumer price index rose 3.9 percent last month compared to a year earlier, slowing down from a 4.3 percent increase in September. The October figure fell within the central bank's target band of 2-4 percent for the first time in 2011. Month-on-month, prices fell 0.2 percent. Core inflation, which excludes volatile oil and food costs, grew 3.7 percent last month from a year earlier, the slowest rise for four months.