Annual manufacturing prices up 0.3%

Monthly factory prices remained unchanged in September from August but were up by 0.2 per cent when compared with the same month a year earlier.

New figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that on an annual basis, manufacturing prices increased 3 per cent in the 12 months to the end of September.

During the month, the price index for export sales remained unchanged while the index for home sales rose 0.5 per cent. Over the year, the home sales price index increased 1.7 per cent.

The most significant increases recorded last month were in the Wood and wood products segment where prices rose 5.4 per cent. Other food products including bread and confectionary rose 2.5 per cent while dairy products prices increased 1.6 per cent.

The most notable price decreases were in fabricated metal products, computer, electronic and optical products and basic pharmaceutical products and preparations.

In the year to the end of September, there was a 10.3 per cent rise in prices for dairy products and a 8.7 per cent increase for computer, electronic and optical products prices.

Over the same period there was an 11.4 per cent decrease in prices for basic pharmaceutical products and preparations, while beverages declined 5 per cent.

The yearly price index for mining and quarrying decreased by 17.7 per cent while there was a monthly increase of 0.7 per cent.

Building and construction material prices rose by 4.1 per cent in the year since September 2009. The price of capital goods increased by 1.3 per cent on a yearly basis while the price of energy products and petroleum fuels rose by 5.4 per cent and 17.5 per cent respectively.