Price index of first-hand domestic sales, 15 May 2008

The price index for first-hand domestic sales, which measures price changes in imported and domestically produced and sold products in manufacturing and food industries, increased by 0.4 per cent from April to May. Only the main product division ‘inedible crude materials except fuels’ saw prices change more than one per cent. Here prices grew by 1.1 per cent, mostly due to a 3.5 per cent increase in the prices of metalliferous ores and metal scrap.

The index for mineral fuels, lubricants and electricity inched up 0.9 per cent. Inside this main product division, prices of petroleum products and electricity changed in opposite directions. The former saw an 11.6 per cent price hike, while the electricity prices slumped by 32.4 per cent. Diesel was among the products which contributed most to the increase in petroleum prices. Due to problems with transferring electricity between different parts of the country and also out of the country, electricity prices in southern Norway dropped much more than in other parts of the country.

Food prices grew by 0.3 per cent. Prices of vegetables and fruit increased 2.5 per cent, while fish prices fell by 0.8 per cent.

Twelve month change: Price growth of 8.1 per cent

Since May of last year the price index for first-hand domestic sales has risen by 8.1 per cent. Prices of mineral fuels, lubricants and electricity have contributed significantly to this growth, with a 37.7 per cent increase over the twelve months. Compared to the same month of last year, the prices of petroleum products were 44.7 per cent higher in May 2008. Despite of fall last month, the price of electricity was 17.2 per cent higher in May than twelve months earlier.

The prices of inedible crude materials except fuels fell by 8.1 per cent during the twelve-month-period. This was largely due to a 23.6 per cent decrease in the prices of metalliferous ores and metal scrap.

Prices of food were 3.5 per cent higher in May than one year earlier. Fruit and vegetable prices increased by a significant 25.2 per cent over this period. Also cereals and cereal preparations and dairy products and eggs saw prices increase by 9.3 per cent and 5.9 per cent, respectively. Over the same period prices of fish fell by 8.3 per cent.