Industry producer prices excluding construction:

June: +0.3% m/m, +3.0% y/y

MNI survey median: +0.4% m/m, +3.1% y/y
MNI survey range: +0.2% to +0.5% m/m

May: +0.3% m/m, +3.1% y/y
April: +1.0% m/m, +2.8% y/y
March: +0.6% m/m, +0.9% y/y
February: +0.1% m/m, -0.4% y/y
January: +0.7% m/m, -1.0% y/y
—

FRANKFURT (MNI) – Much as expected, Eurozone producer prices
remained on a moderate upward trend in June, with energy costs leading
the way, Eurostat said Tuesday.

The 0.3% monthly rise left prices 3.0% higher on the year, barely
5% short of their pre-crisis peak. Previous months showed no revisions.

While Brent crude oil prices were on average little changed from
May to June, energy prices rose 0.6% on the month after a marked
slowdown in May from mostly steeper increases since the start of the
year. The annual increase narrowed to 6.0% from 7.3% in May.

As oil prices dipped in July and September of 2009, energy base
effects should boost annual PPI rates these months, then dampen them in
October, barring any notable jump in prices this year.

Excluding energy, producer prices rose only 0.1% in June,
confirming the still limited feed-through of the past increase in
commodity costs, and were 1.9% higher on the year.

Indeed, the monthly rise intermediate goods prices — the first
affected by higher input costs — slowed to 0.2% in June, giving a 4.3%
rise on the year.

Capital goods prices were flat on the month and 3.0% higher on the
year, the same annual rise as in May.

Prices for consumer durables and non-durables both rose 0.2% on the
month, for annual changes of +0.8% and +0.1%, respectively, after +0.7%
and -0.2% in May.

Monthly PPI increases for most Eurozone countries remained in a
range from flat (France) to +0.6% (Germany). Notable exceptions were
Ireland (-1.1%) and Greece (+0.9%). Annual increases among the larger
economies ranged from 1.5% in Germany to 4.7% in the Netherlands, with
France, Italy and Spain between 3.2% and 3.5%.

After peaking in April, pipeline price pressures have eased in
recent months, according to firms polled for manufacturing purchasing
managers index (PMI). Input prices rose in July at the slowest pace
since February, though still outpacing output prices, for which the
increase in July was the weakest since turning positive in March.

Echoing this assessment, manufacturers revised down their selling
price expectations for the second month in a row in July, the European
Commission’s survey showed. The brought the sub-indicator to its lowest
level since April and back into line with the long-run average.

Demand for most commodities should intensify over the medium term
with the expansion of emerging economies, assuring that prices remain on
average higher than in the past decade, the International Monetary Fund
forecast recently.

— Frankfurt bureau: +49 69 720 142; e-mail: frankfurt@marketnews.com —

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