In February of 2012, the Producer Price Index (IPP) changed -0.38% compared with January, when the index was -0.43%.  Contrasting the current month with the same month a year ago (accumulated in 12 months), prices changed 0.76% in February against 1.75% in January. Conversely, the accumulated change in 2011 was of -0.81% in February and of -0.43% in the previous month.

The IPP measures the evolution of “factory gate prices”, discounted taxes and freight, of twenty-three sectors of the manufacturing industry.  The complete publication can be accessed at www.ibge.gov.br/english/estatistica/indicadores/precos/ipp.

9 of the 23 activities surveyed registered high in prices

 In February of 2012, 9 of the 23 activities surveyed registered high in prices against 9 of the previous month.

The highest increases in February, in relation to January, came from the industrial activities of manufacture of apparel and accessories (2.17%) and printing (1.99%); while the major falls came from tobacco (-2.90%) and other transportation equipment (-1.90%).

The highest influence, or impact, down or up, between February and January (-0.38%) came from food products (

- 0.24 p.p.), other chemical products (- 0.11 p.p.), other transportation equipment (- 0.04 p.p.) and soaps, cleaning and perfume preparations (0.3 p.p.). 

The indicator accumulated in 2012 reached –0.81% in February, against –0.43% in January.

Among the activities with the highest percentage changes in February/12 in this comparison, the highlights were tobacco (-4.77%), other transportation equipment (-3.46%), other chemical products (-3.07%) and manufacture of machinery and equipment (2.04%).

In the index accumulated in the year, the major influences came from:

other chemical products (- 0.33 p.p.), food products (- 0.25 p.p.), basic metals (- 0.16 p.p.) and manufacture of machinery and equipment (0.09 p.p.).

Compared with the same month of

2011 (accumulated in 12 months), prices increased by 0.76% in February, against 1.75% in January. The highest four price changes came from footwear and leather products (16.35%), beverages (8.01%), computer electronic and optical products (- 7.37%), and paper and pulp (- 6.00%).

The main influences, in the comparison of February with the same month a year ago, came from motor vehicles (

0.27 p.p.), food products (0.26 p.p.), computer electronic and optical products (- 0.26 p.p.) and footwear and leather products (0.25 p.p.).

Food products:

In February, on average, the prices changed –1.25%, compared with January, the fourth negative consecutive rate and the highest one. With February’s change, the prices accumulated a negative change of 1.34% in 2012. In the comparison with the last 12 months, the average price change contracted from 2.18% to 1.41%, the sixth negative month, after a rate of 15.97% in August of 2011.

Beverages:

in February, the average price change was -0.23% in relation to the previous month. This is the first negative result since July 2011. The result accumulated in the year was -0.03%, while it recorded a growth of 8.01% in the last 12 months.

Tobacco: The prices dropped 2.90% between January and February.

The result of this indicator was mainly due to the depreciation of dollar in relation to real in the month. In the index accumulated in the year, the prices declined 4.77%. The dollar depreciated by 6% in the February 2012/December 2011 comparison. In the index accumulated in the last 12 months, the result rose by 1.66%.

Apparel and Accessories: The sector registered a positive price change of 2.17%, compared with the previous month. This result, opposing that of January (-1.58%), was mainly due to the release of the new collections and the end of the period of sales. In the index accumulated in the year, the result was positive (0.56%,), reversing the result of the previous month (-1.58%). In the index accumulated in the last 12 months, the result was 3.32%, very close to that of the previous month, 3.23%.

Footwear and leather products: On a month-to-month basis, in February of 2012, the prices of footwear and leather products recorded a positive change of 0.29%.

As a result, the sector accumulated a change of 0.44% in the year. In the comparison between February of 2012 and February of 2011, the average increase was 16.35%.

Paper and pulp:

The sector registered a positive price change of 0.86% between January and February, reversing the negative change of January (-1.57%). In the index accumulated in the year, the change was of -0.72%. Considering the last twelve months, the indicator accumulated a negative change of 6.00%.

Printing: In February of 2012, the sector registered a positive price change of 1.99% between January and February. In the previous month, the change was negative (0.99%). In the index accumulated in the year, the change was positive (0.97%). In the last 12 months, this sector accumulated a positive change of 1.68%.

Petroleum refinement and alcohol products: The activity recorded a change of –0.20% in February in relation to January, following the downward trend of the 2 previous months (the last month with a positive change was November of 2011, against October of the same year).

The sector accumulated a fall of 0.79% in the year. Conversely, in the month/same month a year ago comparison, February recorded a positive result (2.21%), the lowest level of the series since the first time it was published in December of 2010.

Toiletries, Soaps and Cleaning Preparations: The activity recorded a positive price change of 1.84% in February in relation to January of 2012, after the negative result of –0.57% in January against December of 2011. In the year, the sector accumulated a high of 1.26%, while, in the month/same month a year ago comparison, the result was 5.43%.

Other Chemical Products:

The chemical industry recorded a negative change of 1.04% in February compared with January of 2012. That was the fourth consecutive drop (the last positive change was in October of 2011). In the year, the sector recorded a negative change of 3.07% and, in the February 2012/February 2011 comparison, the sector presented a result of –1.56%, the first negative result since the beginning of the series in December of 2010.

Basic metals: In February of 2012, with a result of –0.14%, the activity registered the fourth negative consecutive month compared with the previous month, though it was the lowest negative change among the four results.

In January of 2012, the change was –1.80%. From the last 12 months perspective, there was a negative change of 2.47%.

Optical, electronic and computer equipment: In February, the sector registered, on average, prices 0.57% higher than those of January.

As a result, the prices accumulated 1.42% of positive change in 2012. That differed significantly from the results of 2011, when the series was permanently negative along the year. However, in the index accumulated in the last 12 months, the series kept negative rates, and so it was since the beginning of the series (December of 2010). The rate of February was the lowest one since December of 2011 (-11.82%), which, in turn, interrupted a series of constantly lower rates started in June of 2011 (-16.04%).

Machinery and Equipment: The sector registered a price change of -0.20% between January and February. As a result, the sector accumulated a change of 2.04% in the year. In relation to the indicator of the last 12 months, the prices of February this year were 2.92% higher than those of the same month a year ago.

Motor Vehicles: On a month-to-month basis, in February of 2012, the prices recorded a negative change of 0.08%, against 0.00% in January. Thus, the index accumulated in the year was negative at 0.09%. In the last 12 months, this sector accumulated a positive change of 2.25%, next to the result of the previous month (2.26%), remaining positive since September of 2011.

Other transportation equipment: On a month-to-month basis, the prices recorded a negative change of 1.90% in February of 2012.

Thus, the index accumulated in the year registered a negative change of 3.46%. In the last 12 months, this sector accumulated a positive change of 3.62%, below the changes registered in the previous four months.