Selling prices manufacturing industry marginally higher
Selling prices of Dutch manufacturing industry were 1.4 percent higher in February 2007 than in February 2006. The increase is slightly higher than in January, when selling prices were 0.9 percent up on the same month one year previously. Over the past six months, the price increase ranged between 1 and 2 percent. This moderate development is mainly caused by lower petroleum prices.
There are large differences in price developments within the sector manufacturing industry. Petroleum products were 10 percent cheaper in February than one year previously, due to lower crude oil prices and the cheap dollar. Without taking price developments for petroleum products into account, selling prices in manufacturing industry would be 3.2 percent higher than in February 2006. In the four preceding months, the price increase was in the same order.
Metal prices on the global market rose sharply relative to one year ago. This was one of the reasons that selling prices in basic metal industry were more than 10 percent higher than in February 2006. The price increase is less substantial than in the preceding seven months. Selling prices of wood products rose sharply over the past twelve months and were more than 9 percent higher in February.
