18 May, 2000
Inquiries: Mr Kari Manninen +358 9 1734 2636, Ms
Sonja Kuusisto +358 9 1734 3469, thi.tilastokeskus@stat.fi
Director in charge: Mr Jarmo Hyrkkö
Lower price of crude oil reduced import prices in April, export prices continue to rise
According to Statistics Finland, import prices fell by 0.7 per cent from March to April. One month ago they were still up by nearly one percentage point. The fall in prices was primarily due to the lower world market prices of crude oil. According to the import price index, the price of oil fell by almost 13 per cent from March to April. However, import prices for April 2000 were still 12.2 per cent higher compared to April 1999.
Producer prices for manufactured goods, or producer prices for goods intended for the domestic market, remained unchanged from March to April. The prices of copper and oil products fell most. The biggest increases occurred in the prices of pipes, iron and steel alloys, and fodder. From April 1999 to April 2000, producer prices for goods intended for the domestic market went up by 6.7 per cent.
Export prices continued to rise. Export prices went up by 0.6 per cent from March to April and by 6.9 per cent from April 1999. The price increase in April was primarily due to higher prices of pulp, paper and paper products.
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Month-on-month and year-on-year changes of Producer Price Indices in April 2000, % (1995=100) |
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|
Indices |
Point figure 4/2000 |
Change, % |
Change, % |
|
Producer price index for manufactured goods |
103.1 |
0.0 |
6.7 |
|
Export price index |
100.0 |
0.6 |
6.9 |
|
Import price index |
107.2 |
-0.7 |
12.2 |
|
Basic price index for domestic supply |
105.0 |
-0.2 |
7.5 |
|
Wholesale price index |
105.1 |
-0.4 |
7.1 |
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 describes the change in the purchase prices of goods used in Finland inclusive of tax. Both these indices contain domestic goods and goods imported from abroad.
The HWWA Index, used to measure the dollar-based world market prices of raw materials, rose by 27.2 per cent from last year's April. The lower price of crude oil was clearly visible in the HWWA Index, too. The price of oil went down by 13.4 per cent from March to April.
Source: Producer Price Indices 2000, April. Statistics Finland