According to the report released by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, in February this year industrial producer prices increased by 0.5 percent in the euro area and by 0.6 percent in the European Union member states (EU-28), month on month. As compared to February 2014, industrial producer prices fell by 2.8 percent in the euro area and by 3.4 percent in the EU-28.
In February compared with January, prices in overall industry increased by 0.5 percent in the euro area and by 0.6 percent in the EU-28. Prices in the energy sector increased by two percent in the euro area and by 2.5 percent in the EU-28, month on month. Prices of intermediate goods decreased by 0.2 percent in both the euro area in the EU-28, month on month. Prices of capital goods remained stable in both the euro area and in the EU-28, while the prices of durable and non-durable goods increased by 0.1 percent in both zones, all month on month.
In the given month, among the member states for which data are available, the largest month-on-month decreases in industrial producer prices were recorded in Slovakia (-2.2%), Estonia (-1.8%) and Ireland (-0.8%), while prices increased in Greece (+3.5%), the Netherlands (+2.3%) and Denmark (+1.7%).
In February this year as compared to February 2014, prices in overall industry excluding the energy sector decreased by 0.8 percent in the euro area and by 0.7 in the EU-28. Prices in the energy sector fell by 8.1 percent in the euro area and by 11.5 percent in the EU-28, year on year. Prices of intermediate goods decreased by 1.8 percent in the euro area and by 1.6 percent in the EU-28, year on year. Prices of capital goods rose by 0.7 percent in the euro area and by 0.8 percent in the EU-28, while the prices of non-durable goods decreased by 0.9 percent in the euro area and were down 1.1 percent in the EU-28, all year on year. Meanwhile, the prices of durable consumer goods rose by one percent in the euro area and increased by 0.8 percent in the EU-28, year on year.
Among member states for which data are available, the only year-on-year increase in the overall index was observed in Luxembourg (+1.7%), with prices in Latvia remaining stable, while the largest decreases were seen in Lithuania (-9.2%), the Netherlands (-8.3%), the UK (-8.2%), Belgium (-6.8%), Ireland (-6.0%) and Denmark (-5.8%).