The cost of services in Ireland were 2 per cent higher in the third quarter compared to the same period last year, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office.
Air transport rose 5.9 per cent, while the cost of computer programming and consultancy increased by 2.9 per cent.
Postal and courier services cost 2.7 per cent more than a year earlier, while industrial and building cleaning services showed the largest decrease in prices, falling by 2.6 per cent.
Services prices decreased by 0.3 per cent compared to the second quarter of the year. Over the three-month period, fuel price decreases and market forces led to lower costs for freight and removal by road services, while difficult trading also led to lower prices in warehousing and storage.
The experimental Services Producer Price Index measures changes in the average prices that are charged by domestic service producers to other businesses for a selected range of services.
The Central Statistics Office advises that the index is still under development, and that all figures should be treated as provisional.
Most of the services that are in the index are provided to business customers only and they may not be indicative of more general price trends in the economy.
