The Industrial Price Index (IPRI) registered a year-on-year decrease of 23.6% in the Canary Islands in May, which, so far this year, is 23.2%, according to data released this Tuesday by the INE.
This index measures the monthly evolution of the prices of products manufactured by industry and sold in the domestic market in the first stage of their commercialization. The IPRI excludes transportation, marketing and indirect taxes invoiced.
At the national level, this indicator softened its fall in May to 4.6% year-on-year, a decrease 2.1 points softer than in April (6.7%) due to the lower decline mainly in energy, but also in intermediate goods.
According to data published this Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), industrial prices accumulated fifteen consecutive months of declines, although in the last three months these declines have moderated.
In May, the moderation of the fall in the index occurred to a large extent thanks to energy, since although its price fell by 15.1%, this decrease was 5.6 points softer than in April due to the increase in both electricity and gas production, which were cheaper a year earlier.
Intermediate goods also put upward pressure on prices, as they fell by 3.1%, 9 tenths less than in April, due to the increase in precious metals and other non-ferrous metals, compared to the decrease a year earlier.
Once the energy component is eliminated, the industrial price index grew to 0.4% in May, four tenths above the April rate and five points away from the general index.
By region, industrial prices fell in all autonomous communities, except in Murcia (where they grew by 1.6%), and more intensely in the Canary Islands (23.6%), Asturias (22.1%) and the Balearic Islands (20.8%).
In monthly terms, industrial prices grew eight tenths in May compared to April due to the rise in electricity and gas and despite the downward pressure, mainly, from oil refining.