German Import Prices Decline Most Since 2009
Germany's import prices decreased at the fastest rate in more than six years during February, as lower energy prices continued to dampen inflationary pressures, preliminary data from Destatis showed Thursday.
The import price index dropped 5.7 percent year-on-year following 3.8 percent decline in January. Economists were looking for a 5.1 percent fall.
The latest decline was the biggest since October 2009, when import prices plunged 8.1 percent.
Energy prices slumped 34.1 percent with crude oil prices plunging 42.1 percent and prices of petroleum products dropping 36.7 percent.
Excluding energy prices, import prices decreased 1.9 percent from a year ago. Stripping off crude oil and mineral oil products, prices fell 2.8 percent year-on-year.
Month-on-month, import prices declined 0.6 percent in February after a 1.5 percent drop in January. Economists had forecast a 0.2 percent decrease.
The export price index decreased 1.2 percent annually following a 0.5 percent fall in the previous month. Compared to the previous month, the decline was 0.5 percent.
The material has been provided by InstaForex Company - www.instaforex.com
