17 December, 1999
Inquiries: Mr Jarmo Ranki +358 9 1734 3472, Ms Sonja
Karell +358 9 1734 3469; thi.tilastokeskus@stat.fi
Director in charge: Mr Jarmo Hyrkkö
Import prices up by close on 9 per cent in the year
According to Statistics Finland, import prices rose by 8.7 per cent in the year to November. This was particularly due to increases in the world market price of crude oil, but also to higher prices of oil products and colour metals. Import prices last rose this fast in 1993. From 1995, import prices have gone up by 2.5 per cent.
From October to November, import prices went up by 2 per cent, largely due to increases in the price of crude oil.
Export prices rose by 0.1 per cent in the year to November. In October, export prices were still falling at the year-on-year rate of 2.4 per cent and the last year-on-year increases in export prices were recorded in June last year. From October to November, export prices rose by 0.8 per cent.
Both in yearly and monthly comparisons, increases in the prices of pulp, paper, paper and oil products and colour metals pushed the export price index up, whereas reductions in the prices of electrical products and optical equipment had a downward effect on the index.
Producer prices for manufactured goods, or producer prices for goods intended for the domestic market, went up by 3 per cent in the year to November, due to higher prices of oil products and pulp. From October to November, producer prices for manufactured goods rose by 0.8 per cent.
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Producer price indices 1995=100 and their monthly and annual changes in November 1999, % |
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Indices |
Point figure 11/1999 |
Change 10/99 -11/99, % |
Change 11/98 -11/99, % |
Producer price index for manufactured goods |
99.9 |
0.8 |
3.0 |
Export price index |
94.4 |
0.8 |
0.1 |
Import price index |
102.5 |
2.0 |
8.7 |
Basic price index for domestic supply |
101.7 |
1.1 |
4.1 |
Wholesale price index |
101.8 |
1.0 |
3.9 |
Producer price indices measure the development of commodity prices from enterprises' viewpoint. The basic price index for domestic supply measures the price development of goods used in Finland as they enter the market, i.e. purchase prices exclusive of tax. The wholesale price index measures the change in the purchase prices of goods used in Finland inclusive of tax. Both these indices contain domestic and imported goods.
The HWWA Index, used to measure the dollar-based world market prices of raw materials, rose by 42.4 per cent in the year to November due to higher price of crude oil, in particular. Since last year's November, the price of crude oil has gone up by 96.5 per cent. From October to November, the HWWA index rose by 5.5 per cent.
Source: Producer Price Indices 1999, November. Statistics Finland