SEJONG, Aug. 31-- South Korea's antitrust watchdog plans to launch an investigation into consumers' complaints about the overpriced auto parts used in imported foreign vehicles, its top official has said.

"Consumers' complaints are growing over excessive repair costs of imported vehicles... We are going to look into auto part prices of imported cars in September and October," Noh Dae-lae, head of the Fair Trade Commission (FTC), told reporters during a meeting Thursday. His remarks were embargoed until Sunday.