2023-07-14 10:18:52
In June, prices in German wholesale fell more than they had in three years due to cheaper energy. They fell by 2.9 percent compared to the same month last year, as the Federal Statistical Office announced on Friday.
This is not only the third decline in a row, but also the strongest since June 2020, when the outbreak of the corona pandemic also caused economic turmoil. In May there was a minus of 2.6 percent, in April minus 0.5 percent. Wholesale prices also fell from May to June, by 0.2 percent.
Is inflation easing now?
With the falling price pressure in wholesale, inflation in Germany could also ease further. Because wholesalers act as a link between manufacturers and end customers, price reductions usually reach consumers with a delay. Bucking the trend in the euro zone, the inflation rate rose to 6.4 percent in June, which is due to special effects such as the tank discount introduced a year earlier and the 9-euro ticket.
Christian Siedenbiedel Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 10 Hanna Decker Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 17 Published/Updated: Recommendations: 6
Petroleum products such as gasoline had the greatest influence on the development of wholesale prices last month, which rose particularly sharply a year ago after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This time they were 22.7 percent cheaper than a year earlier. Waste material and residues (-31.7 percent), grain, raw tobacco, seeds and animal feed (-28.4 percent) and ores, metals and semi-finished metal products (-20.8 percent) were also cheaper. On the other hand, the prices for fruit, vegetables and potatoes (+29.5 percent) and for live animals (+20.7 percent) rose.
The strongest inflation drivers are currently food, for which consumers had to pay 13.7 percent more in June than a year earlier. But there are signs of relaxation here too: Producer prices for agricultural products fell in May by 7.7 percent compared to the same month last year and thus for the second time in a row, as the statistical office further announced. Vegetable products cost 20.8 percent less than a year earlier, while animal products cost 2.1 percent more. Falling producer prices usually reach consumers with a time lag.
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