Rising oil prices are pushing up inflation in Germany, data published by the Federal Statistics Office showed today.
The office calculated the German producer price index (PPI) rose by 0.4 per cent in February from the figure for January and was per cent higher than it had been in February 2002.
The 12-month rate of producer price inflation was therefore the highest since September 2001, the office said.
In January and December, PPI had risen by 1.6 per cent and 0.9 per cent year-on-year respectively. "The strong rise in producer prices is primarily attributable to energy prices which rose by an average 6.2 per cent year-on-year in February," the statement said.
Petrol prices soared by 19 per cent and fuel prices were up 14.6 per cent. Excluding energy prices, German PPI would have risen by just 0.8 per cent on a 12-month basis in February, the statisticians calculated.
AFP