LUXEMBOURG (dpa-AFX) – The price increase in the euro zone at the producer level has strengthened again after a pause. In July, the prices that manufacturers receive for their goods rose by 37.9 percent compared to the same month last year, according to the Eurostat statistics office in Luxembourg on Friday. This is the strongest boost since monetary union came into existence. In May and June, inflation slowed somewhat after prices had risen at record speed in April. Analysts had expected an average rate of 37.3 percent for July.
Producer prices continue to rise particularly sharply in the energy sector. They almost doubled compared to the same month of the previous year, alone they rose by nine percent compared to the previous month. Intermediate goods, which are particularly important for production, also rose sharply. However, the rise in prices here has been weakening for a few months. By contrast, the prices of consumer and capital goods rose more sharply than in the previous month.
Producer prices capture producer-level price pressure by reflecting producer selling prices. With a slight delay, the development usually has an impact on consumer prices, on which the European Central Bank (ECB) bases its monetary policy aligns. In view of the high inflation, the ECB carried out its first interest rate hike in July. A further increase is expected for the next session on Thursday./bgf/jsl/jha/