Euro-Area Producer Prices Fell Less Than Estimated in October

Euro-area producer-price inflation slowed less than estimated in October as higher prices for intermediate and non-durable consumer goods offset slower energy-cost growth.

Factory-gate prices in the 17-nation euro region rose 2.6 percent from a year earlier after a 2.7 percent increase in September, the European Union’s statistics office in Luxembourg said today. Economists had forecast an increase of 2.5 percent, the median of 18 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey showed. From the prior month, prices gained 0.1 percent.

Energy costs on the producer level rose an annual 5.9 percent in October after a 6.9 percent increase in the previous month, the statistics office said. Prices of intermediate goods rose 1.3 percent after a 0.8 percent increase in September, while non-durable consumer goods were up 2.5 percent.

In Germany, Europe’s largest economy, producer prices rose 1.5 percent from a year earlier, after increasing 1.7 percent in the previous month, today’s data showed. France reported a gain of 2.9 percent, with prices in Spain and Portugal increasing 3.5 percent and 4.6 percent, respectively.

To contact the reporter on this story: Patrick Henry in Brussels at phenry8@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Craig Stirling at cstirling1@bloomberg.net