According to the report from Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), in May 2020 the index of producer prices for industrial products decreased by 2.2% compared with the corresponding month of the preceding year. Economists had expected a 2.1% decrease. In April the annual rate of change all over had been –1.9%. Compared with the preceding month April the overall index fell by 0.4% in May 2020 (-0.7% in April). Economists had expected a 0.3% decrease.

Energy prices as a whole decreased by 7.9% (-1.2% compared to April 2020). On an annual basis, prices of petroleum products were down 27.5%. They fell by 3.1% compared to April 2020. A great part of this decrease presumably is due to the fallen decline in demand during the Corona pandemic. Prices of natural gas (distribution) decreased by 13.4%.

The overall index disregarding energy was 0.3% down on May 2019 and fell by 0.2% compared to April 2020.

Prices of intermediate goods decreased by 2.6% compared to May 2019 (-0.1% on April 2020). Prices decreased especially regarding basic iron, steel and ferro-alloys (-9.6%) as well as paper and paperboard (-5.8%) and basic chemicals (-8.2%). Prices of cereal flour were down 3.5%. By contrast, prices of precious metals increased by 25.6% compared to May 2019. Prices of articles of concrete, cement and plaster rose by 3.7%.

Prices of non-durable consumer goods increased by 1.3% compared to May 2019 (-1.1% on April 2020). Food prices were up 1.5% on May 2019. The price of sugar increased by 17.5%. Prices of meat and poultry meat products rose by 14.1%. By contrast, prices of swine fresh or chilled fell by 7.2% (-12.5% on April 2020). In addition, butter prices fell by 25.2% compared to May 2019 and prices for processed and preserved potatoes were 8.6 % down on May 2019.