According to a report released by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, in December last year industrial producer prices went down by 0.8 percent in the euro area and 0.9 percent in the European Union member states (EU), month on month. On year-on-year basis, in the given month, industrial producer prices were down by 10.6 percent in the euro area and by 10.0 percent in the EU.
In December, compared with November, prices in the energy sector were down by 2.3 percent in the euro area and by 2.4 percent in the EU. Prices of capital goods remained stable in both areas, while prices of durable goods were unchanged in the euro area and went down 0.1 percent in the EU, month on month. In the same month, prices of non-durable goods increased by 0.1 percent in both areas, while prices of intermediate goods decreased by 0.3 percent in the euro area and 0.4 percent in the EU, all on month-on-month basis.
Among member states for which data are available, the largest month-on-month increases in industrial producer prices were recorded in Greece (+1.0%), Belgium (+0.5%) and Cyprus and Luxembourg (both +0.3%), while the largest decreases were observed in Ireland (-12.0%), the Netherlands (-1.8%) and Estonia (-1.4%).
In the given month, compared with December 2022, prices in the energy sector fell by 27.5 percent in the euro area and by 25.6 percent in the EU. Prices of intermediate goods decreased by 4.9 percent in the euro area and 5.0 percent in the EU, while prices of durable goods were up by 3.0 percent in the euro area and by 2.4 percent in the EU, all on year-on-year basis. In the same month, prices of non-durable goods moved up by 3.2 percent in the euro area and 3.0 percent in the EU, year on year. Prices of capital goods rose by 2.8 percent in both areas, year on year.
Among member states for which data are available, the largest year-on-year increases were recorded in Luxembourg (+20.2%), Slovakia (+13.3%) and Slovenia (+2.0%), while Ireland (-43.5%), Italy (-20.5%) and Bulgaria (-19.8%) posted the biggest declines.