The industrial prices grew 0.56% in February 2022 over January, a figure below that in the comparison between January 2022 and December 2021 (1.20%).

In February, the prices of 15 out of 24 industrial activities investigated in the survey record positive price changes against the immediately previous month.

The Producer Price Index - IPP of the Mining and Manufacturing Industries measures the evolution of the prices of products "at the factory gate", free from taxes and freight, and encompasses information by major economic category, i.e., capital goods, intermediate goods and consumer goods (durable and semi and non-durable).

In February 2022, the prices of the mining and manufacturing industries (IPP) changed, on average, 0.56% when compared with January 2022, a figure below that of the comparison between January 2022 and December 2021 (1.20%).

In February 2022, 15 out of 24 industrial activities investigated in the survey recorded positive price changes against the immediately previous month, following the signal of the change in the index of the overall industry. It had been 18 in January.

The four activities with the highest changes in absolute terms in February were: mining and quarrying industries (8.34%), tobacco (-2.92%), wood (-2.73%) and basic metals (-2.55%).

Mining and quarrying industries was the industrial sector that mostly highlighted in the aggregate result, accounting for 0.44 percentage points (p.p.) of influence on the change of 0.56% in the overall industry. Other activities that also stood out were petroleum refining and biofuels (0.19 p.p. of influence), basic metals (-0.18 p.p.) and food products (0.16 p.p.).

Considering the price changes in February, the cumulative indicator in the year stayed at 1.77%. In 2021, the cumulative rate up to February had been 8.88%. The cumulative rate in the year up to this reference month was the third highest ever registered for February since the beginning of the time series in 2014.

The following activities were among those that recorded the highest changes in the cumulative index in the year in February 2022: mining and quarrying industries (18.68%), beverages (4.90%), tobacco (-4.39%) and printing (4.04%). The major influences were mining and quarrying industries (0.91 p.p.), petroleum refining and biofuels (0.44 p.p.), basic metals (-0.29 p.p.) and motor vehicles (0.17 p.p.).

The cumulative change over the last 12 months was 20.05% in this reference month. In the previous month (January 2022), that indicator had registered 25.53%.

The sectors with the four highest price changes were: petroleum refining and biofuels (49.47%), other chemicals (41.85%), wood (29.41%) and fabricated metal products (26.59%). The sectors that exerted the biggest influence were: petroleum refining and ethanol products (4.52 p.p.), food products (3.90 p.p.), other chemicals (3.54 p.p.) and basic metals (1.29 p.p.).

Among the major economic categories, the price changes in February 2022 over January 2022 were the following: 0.64% in capital goods (BK), 0.50% in intermediate goods (BI), and 0.65% in consumer goods (BC), being the change reported in durable consumer goods (BCD) of 0.15% and that in semi and non-durable consumer goods (BCND) of 0.75%.

The major influence among the major economic categories was exerted by intermediate goods, whose weight in the overall index was 58.94%, and it accounted for 0.30 p.p. of the 0.56% change in the mining and manufacturing industries.. Consumer goods (influence of 0.22 p.p.) and capital goods (0.04 p.p.) complete the list.

The cumulative change in the year of the major economic categories reached: 3.20%, in the case of capital goods; 2.26% in intermediate goods; and 0.63% in consumer goods, in which durable consumer goods accumulated a change of 1.31%, whereas semi and non-durable consumer goods, 0.50%.

In terms of influence on the cumulative index in the year, capital goods accounted for 0.22 p.p. of the rate of 1.77% registered in the overall industry up to February this year. Intermediate goods, in turn, accounted for 1.33 p.p., whereas consumer goods exerted influence of 0.22 p.p., which was split into 0.07 p.p. due to the price changes in durable consumer goods and 0.15 p.p. due to the changes in semi and non-durable consumer goods.

The price change in capital goods was 19.88% in the cumulative indicator in the last 12 months among the major economic categories in February 2022. The prices of intermediate goods, in turn, changed 22.06% in the period of one year and the change in consumer goods was of 16.76%, in which durable consumer goods changed 13.22% and semi and non-durable consumer goods, 17.47%.

Concerning the influences on the result along the last 12 months among the major economic categories, intermediate goods, with a weight of 58.94% in the overall index, accounted for 12.79 p.p. in 20.05% of cumulative change in 12 months in industry, in the reference month. In the result of February 2022, consumer goods influenced 5.88 p.p. and capital goods, 1.38 p.p.

The following sectors stood out in February:

Mining and quarrying industries: the prices of the mining and quarrying industries changed 8.34%, on average, causing the cumulative index in the year to reach 18.68%. In the annual comparison, the prices in February 2022 were, on average, 5.73% lower than those in February 2021. It is worth noticing that the highest monthly rate in the time series started in January 2014 was exactly that of February 2021 (27.91%), causing the most recent data to be compared with a high basis. The last negative rate in the cumulative indicator in 12 months had been that of May 2020 (-3.04%). This sector stood out due to the fact that it registered the highest change both in the monthly indicator and in the cumulative indicator in the year, as well as the biggest influence in these two indicators: 0.44 p.p. in 0.56% (monthly indicator) and 0.91 p.p. in 1.77% (cumulative index in the year).

Food products: the price change in this sector returned to the positive side in February. Having retreated 0.19%, it advanced 0.70%, taking the cumulative index in the year to reach 0.51%. In 12 months, the result of 16,09% was a retreat in relation to January (16.69%), which, in turn, was a retreat in relation to the end of 2021 (18.66%).

The highlight was due to influence, both in the monthly indicator (the fourth one, 0.16 p.p. in 0.56%, the average change in the prices of the 24 industrial activities surveyed) and in the cumulative index in 12 months (the second one, 3.90% in 20.05%). Food products was the sector with the highest weight in industry in February (23.44%).

An issue to be considered in the analysis of the price movement of food products was the currency rate, since many of the products listed as highlights in terms of influence were exported. In February over January, the real increased 6.1% against the dollar, the highest valuation since June 2020 (7.9%), a downward pressure. On the other hand, soybean derivatives faced a drop in the supply (due to climate issues) in a moment in which the world demand heated.

Petroleum refining and biofuels: the prices in this sector changed 1.70% in February in relation to January, causing the change in the first bimester to reach 3.97%. The change was 49.47% in relation to February 2021. Although it was the highest one among the 24 industrial sectors, it was 15.31 p.p. below that reported in January. It is worth noting that February 2021 recorded the third highest monthly change (12.12%), losing to June 2020 (17.16%) and March 2021 (16.68%). As a result, the result of February 2022 against February 2021 was influenced by the high comparison basis.

This sector stood out as it registered the most intense change in the cumulative index in 12 months. It was also the second biggest influence both in the monthly indicator (0.19 p.p. in 0.56%) and in the cumulative index in the year (0.44 p.p. in 1.77%), and the biggest influence in 12 months (4.52 p.p. in 20.05%).

Other chemicals: the chemical industry changed -0.94%, the first negative figure since May 2021, when it had changed -0.47%. The results were mainly linked with international prices, reminding that the dollar changed -6.1% in relation to the real in February and -8.1% in the cumulative index in the year.

The major responsible for the month´s result were the products of the group of “manufacture of resins and elastomers” (-7.42%). This negative result exceeded the positive change of 0.82% in the group of “manufacture of inorganic chemicals” and of 2.53% in the group of “manufacture of agrochemical products and disinfectants (for agriculture and other use)”.
Therefore, the cumulative indicator in the year stayed at -0.75%, repeating the same behavior of the groups previously described, being that “manufacture of resins and elastomers” stayed at -10.60%, whereas “manufacture of inorganic chemicals” and “manufacture of agrochemical products and disinfectants (for agriculture and other use) stayed at 1.02% and 11.06%, respectively.

Concerning the result in the last 12 months, the major highlight was the group of inorganic chemicals, more specifically with the cumulative price rise in manure/fertilizers, caused by the significant increase of inputs, due to the smaller production of fertilizers in the foreign market. The price change in this group was of 92.94%, significantly contributing to the change in 12 months (41.85%).

On the other hand, the group of “manufacture of resins and elastomers” changed 6.15% in 12 months, the lowest value for this index since June 2020, when it hit 0.67%. In “manufacture of agrochemical products and disinfectants (for agriculture and other use), the result was 27.93%, the second highest figure in the entire time series, only behind the cumulative index last month (28.80%).

Basic metals: the price change in this activity was -2.55%, the fourth consecutive negative change, after a series of 16 positive changes. With this result, the sector of basic metals accumulated a change of -3.98% in the year and of 18.71% in 12 months.  Another highlight is that between December 2018 (base for the current sample) and February 2022, the prices of the sector had a cumulative increase of 79.85%, only second to the cumulative increase of mining and quarrying industries, 113.66%, activity that includes iron ore, main raw material for steel.

“The results of the sector are linked with the behavior of the groups of steel products  and non-ferrous material (copper, gold and aluminum), whose prices behave differently. The steel sector is affected by the recomposition of stocks in the consuming chain, by the prices of iron ore, which has recovered over the last months, though still with a cumulative negative change in the last 12 months. In addition, the valuation of the real against the dollar should be considered: 6.1% in February, 8.1% in the year and 4.1% over the last 12 months. Concerning the second group – non-ferrous materials –, prices used to be linked with the quotes in the international stock markets.

Considering the economic groups in this activity, the steel industry recorded a negative change for the fifth time in a row, now of -4.08%, thus accumulating -5.98% in the year and 17.82% in the last 12 months.

The basic metals sector stood out in the comparison with the 24 activities of the survey, as it recorded the fourth change in module this month and the third biggest influence of prices this month (-0.18 p.p. in 0.56%), the same position in influence in the year (-0.29% in 1.77%) and the fourth influence in the cumulative index in 12 months (1.29 p.p. in 20.05%).

Motor vehicles: the change reported in this sector was 0.28% in February. That was the 20th consecutive positive figure in this indicator. As a result, this sector accumulated a change of 2.55%. The cumulative change in the last 12 months increased 14.79%, below the rate of 15.94% registered in January, which had been the highest figure for this indicator in the time series.

Having registered the fourth biggest influence on the cumulative result in the year (0.17 p.p. in 1.77% of the overall industry), the activity of motor vehicles stood out among all the sectors surveyed.

The economic group of that activity, “manufacture of cars, pick ups and SUVs” changed 0.02% in February over January. Like the sector, this was the 20th consecutive positive figure in this indicator. In addition, the group accumulated a change of 1.81% in the first bimester of 2022, whereas it recorded 11.91% in the last 12 months. It is worth highlighting that all these figures were below the sector average.