German import prices rose 0.9 per cent month-on-month in August on dearer steel and fuel, Germany's Federal Statistics Office said this morning.
Compared with August 2003, import prices were up 2.5 per cent, equalling a 2.5 per cent rise in May, which was the fastest increase since June 2001, Bundesbank data showed.
Scrap iron and steel was 23.6 per cent more expensive on the month, and 73.4 per cent dearer than in August 2003, the Statistics Office said. Diesel and light heating oil prices also rose sharply.
The data came after a survey of manufacturing purchasing managers in August found 43 per cent reporting input prices rose in the month, led by strong increases in oil and steel prices.
Firms raised output prices for a fifth month to seek to cover the increased costs, but many also said market forces meant much of the inflationary pressure had to be absorbed in profit margins.