Latvia's producer price index (PPI) grew 3.3% y/y in August, data from the Central Statistical Bureau (CSB) showed on September 21.
The reading shows factory gate prices growing for a seventh straight month. The index shed 0.3pp versus the July reading. PPI gained 0.1% in monthly terms in August, 0.4pp slower than in the previous month.
Despite slowing down, PPI inflation points to persisting inflationary pressure in Latvia. Headline inflation came in at 3.1% y/y in August. CPI will grow 2.3% in 2017, according to the European Commission. Last year, inflation pushed to just 0.1%.
Price growth in the manufacturing segment drove the annual expansion in factory gate prices as it gained 4% y/y in August. That was offset to an extent by deflation in the utilities segment, where prices contracted 0.2% on the year.
In the water supply segment prices grew 6.8% y/y, while in mining and quarrying, the price growth came in at 0.8%.