Price index of first-hand domestic sales, 15 December 2012

The 0.3 per cent increase in PIF from November to December 2012 was mainly due to higher prices of electricity and food products.

Prices of mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials rose by 2.4 per cent from November to December 2012. The price increase was due to a price jump of 17.6 per cent in electricity prices that more than offset the 2.3 per cent fall in prices of petroleum and petroleum products.

Food prices rose 0.7 per cent from November to December 2012, mainly because of an increase in prices of fruit and vegetables. Import prices had the strongest growth, but prices increased both for imported and domestically produced fruit and vegetables during this period.

From November to December 2012, a 2.5 per cent decrease in prices of crude materials (inedible, except fuels) was the largest contributor to the increase in the PIF.

Twelve-month rate: prices rose 1. 3 per cent

The PIF rose 1.3 per cent from December 2011 to December 2012. Higher prices of food products as well as mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials were the most important reasons for the increase in the PIF. Food prices rose 3.8 per cent during this period. The 3.1 per cent rise in prices within mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials was largely due to higher prices of electricity.

Annual change: PIF decreased 0.4 per cent from 2011 to 2012

The PIF decreased 0.4 per cent from 2011 to 2012. The annual change  in prices on the domestic market was very moderate, with only a 0.1 per cent fall from 2011 to 2012. In the same period, the decline in import prices was higher. As prices in the PIF are measured in NOK, the appreciation of the NOK versus several other currencies is one factor that has contributed to the decline in the PIF.

Lower prices of electricity and crude materials

The decrease in the PIF from 2011 to 2012 was largely due to the price development within the two commodity groups crude materials (inedible, except fuels) and mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials.

Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials had 2.7 per cent lower prices in 2012 than in 2011. The largest price drop in this commodity group was for electricity, where prices fell almost 26 per cent from 2011 to 2012. High precipitation and reservoir levels for large parts of the year were two reasons behind the relatively low electricity prices in 2012 compared to 2011. The annual growth in prices of petroleum and petroleum products was 5.7 per cent higher in 2012. This is much lower than in 2011, when the annual growth was as high as 28 per cent.

Prices of crude materials (inedible, except fuels) declined by 7.6 per cent from 2011 to 2012. The price drop was primarily due to lower import prices, while prices of domestically produced crude materials had a smaller price fall of 2.4 per cent during the same period. The price development of metalliferous ores and metal scrap was the main reason behind the fall in crude material prices. Pulp and waste paper and wood, lumber and cork are other crude materials that experienced a price decrease from 2011 to 2012. Prices of crude fertilizers and crude minerals, on the other hand, had an annual growth of more than 7 per cent in the same period.

Prices of manufactured goods classified by material slipped back 0.7 per cent from 2011 to 2012. In the same period, prices of machinery and transport equipment fell 0.5 per cent. The reason for these price declines was lower import prices.

Higher prices of food and chemicals and related products

The annual growth in food prices from 2011 to 2012 was 1.6 per cent. More than 6 per cent higher prices of vegetables and fruit as well as meat and meat preparations were important reasons behind the price growth. In addition, prices of cereals and cereal preparations, as well as feeding stuff for animals rose 4.1 and 3.4 per cent respectively. A large contributor to dampening the annual growth in food prices in 2012 was fish prices, which fell more than 10 per cent from 2011 to 2012.

Chemicals and related products had an annual growth of 3.1 per cent in 2012. Price rises in inorganic as well as organic chemicals were two important explanations behind this. Medicinal and pharmaceutical products is the sub-group of chemical and related materials that experienced the largest price fall during the same period.

Tables

Published tables