BERLIN: German import prices rose at a faster-than-expected clip last month, bolstered by higher oil prices, in the latest sign of the pick-up in inflation in the eurozone.
Import prices rose 2.1 per cent in August from the same month in 2016, Destatis said on Tuesday, from 1.9 per cent in July. That was higher than the 1.9 per cent that was forecast by economists in a FactSet survey. Excluding crude oil and mineral oil products, the increase would have been 1.7 per cent. The gauge has been volatile this year, hitting 7.4 per cent in February, according to FactSet, as oil prices rebounded vigorously in early 2017 from 2016. However, import prices have more recently held near the 2 per cent annual growth range, a significant improvement from years in deflationary territory (see chart above). That comes as good news for European Central Bank policymakers, who have enacted aggressive stimulus measures, including low interest rates and a vast bond-buying programme, to boost inflation.
