ILLUSTRATIVE FILE PHOTO: Warehouse storage; not identified as a German facility. Photo: Brayden Prato / Unsplash / Unsplash License. Published May 30, 2023; cropped and resized.
German wholesale prices rose 8.8% in October from a year earlier, the fastest annual increase since February 2023, as higher petroleum-product prices continued to push up costs across the supply chain.
The Federal Statistical Office, Destatis, said in its November 13 release that wholesale selling prices increased 0.4% from September. The annual rate edged up from 8.7% in September and was above August’s 6.8%.
Destatis attributed the continued rise primarily to the conflict in Iran and the Middle East, which has raised wholesale prices for energy products in particular. The last annual increase higher than October’s was February 2023’s 9.5%.
Petroleum products lead the increase
Wholesale prices for mineral oil products were 47.6% higher than a year earlier and rose 0.9% from September, the agency said. They were the main contributor to the overall annual increase.
Prices in the category covering grain, unmanufactured tobacco, seeds and animal feeds climbed 21.2% year over year and 0.7% month over month. Chemical products cost 18.6% more than a year earlier and 1.1% more than in September.
The report also showed higher prices for computers and peripheral equipment, up 13.4% from October 2025 and 1.5% from the previous month. Non-ferrous ores, metals and semi-finished metal products rose 13.8% annually, although prices in that category fell 1.6% on the month.
Some food-related prices fall from a year earlier
The increases were not uniform. Wholesale prices for live animals dropped 15.8% year over year and 2.7% from September.
Prices for coffee, tea, cocoa and spices fell 8.4% from a year earlier, while the category covering milk, dairy products, eggs, edible fats and oils declined 7.1%. Both categories nevertheless recorded monthly increases, of 1.4% and 1.0%, respectively.
The release measures wholesale selling prices, rather than the prices consumers pay at the checkout. Its figures show where businesses buying goods further up the supply chain are facing higher or lower costs.
JBizNews Desk | Wiesbaden, Germany
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