Tunisia’s PPI inflation retreated to 2.9% y/y in February 2013 from 4.0% a month earlier, due mainly to slower growth in manufacturing producer prices, the statistics office said. Mining and quarrying production prices also tumbled during the month due to slower external demand and periodic sit-ins and strikes waged by labourers. In monthly terms, PPI inflation edged up 0.1% m/m compared with a 0.5% growth a month earlier. Manufacturing producer prices (83% of the basket) grew 3.4% y/y in February, easing from a 4.4% rise the month before. Higher food prices, whose producer costs increased 5.1% over the period, and strong housing demand that lifted construction materials’ producer charges by 3.5%, were the main growth engine.
Chemical producer prices shrank 0.9% y/y in February due to lower commodity prices and even external demand. Strong EU demand boosted charges of textiles by 3.3% in February. Mining and quarrying production inched up just 0.7% y/y, braking from 5.4% growth the month before. Such prices fell 0.7% m/m in February. Water and electricity producer prices were unchanged in annual terms.
Related Articles
Egypt brings new gas well online with 10mn cubic feet/day output
Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources is finalising procedures to bring a new natural gas well, North El-Basant-1, into production with an expected output of around 10mn cubic feet ... more
Tunisia kicks off stalled expansion of solar projects with 1.3GW capacity push
Tunisia is finally accelerating the deployment of its large-scale photovoltaic (PV) sector after years of slow progress, with construction now underway across multiple major projects, PV-Magazine ... more
Shell and Petronas seek 20% gas price increase for Egypt’s West Delta marine phase
UK energy major Shell (LON:SHEL) and Malaysia's national oil and gas company Petronas have asked the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) to raise the gas price for the upcoming Phase 12 ... more