Soaring energy costs pushed Germany’s producer prices to a record high in May, suggesting households in Europe’s biggest economy should brace for even higher consumer price inflation as at least a portion of higher business costs tends to be passed along to end consumers.
Germany’s statistical agency said on June 20 that its gauge of producer prices vaulted 33.6 percent in annualized terms in May, the fastest pace since the start of data collection in 1949.
While a steep jump in energy prices drove the bulk of the rise in producer prices, the overall index excluding energy climbed 16.5 percent in May. That’s up from April and a sign that cost inflation was becoming more broad based, seeping into other categories, such as food, which climbed 19.2 percent in the year through May….