Gas Stations Are Empty; Briquette Factories Are Busy

As oil prices continue to surge, there were noticeably fewer customers at the Banpo gas station in Seocho-gu, Seoul (left) on August 28. By contrast, the Samcheolly EE briquette factory in Imundong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul was busy. The consumption of briquettes made by the company has jumped by 40 percent compared to last year as more consumers are replacing their oil boilers with briquette-fired boilers in the face of high oil prices and the economic recession.

Young-Han Jeon Hoon-Koo Lee scoopjyh@donga.com ufo@donga.com¡¤