Factory-gate prices for chemical raw materials and products fell 6 per cent year-on-year in February

According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on March 9, in February 2023, China's industrial producer prices fell by 1.4% year-on-year, and remained flat month-on-month. The purchasing prices of industrial producers decreased 0.5% year on year and 0.2% month on month. Among them, the factory gate prices of chemical raw materials and chemical products were down 6 percent year on year, and remained unchanged month on month.

From January to February, the producer price at the factory gate was 1.1 percent lower than the same period last year, and the purchasing price at the producer level was 0.2 percent lower. Among them, the ex-factory prices of chemical raw materials and chemical products fell 5.5 percent year on year.

February industrial producer prices year-on-year change

Among the producer prices, the prices of means of production fell by 2.0%, contributing 1.61 percentage points to the overall drop in producer prices. In particular, prices of the extractive industry increased by 0.3%, prices of the raw material industry decreased by 1.3%, and prices of the processing industry decreased by 2.6%. The 1.1% rise in the price of subsistence means affected the overall producer price increase by about 0.25 percentage points. Among them, food prices rose 2.6 percent, clothing prices rose 1.6 percent, general daily necessities rose 0.7 percent and consumer durables fell 0.2 percent.

Among the purchasing prices of industrial producers, the prices of ferrous metal materials fell by 6.9%, that of chemical raw materials by 5.4%, that of building materials and non-metals by 4.9%, and that of non-ferrous metal materials and electric wires by 2.2%. Fuel and power prices rose by 5.2 percent and agricultural and sideline products by 4.4 percent.

February industrial producer prices month-on-month change

Among the producer prices, the price of means of production rose by 0.1%, affecting the overall producer prices by about 0.06 percentage points. Among them, prices of extractive industries decreased by 0.3 percent, prices of raw materials industries increased by 0.7 percent and prices of processing industries decreased by 0.1 percent. The price of means of living fell by 0.3%, affecting the overall level of producer prices to fall by about 0.08 percentage points. Among them, food prices fell 0.1 percent, clothing and general daily necessities fell 0.3 percent, and consumer durables fell 0.5 percent.

Among the purchasing prices of industrial producers, the prices of agricultural and sideline products, building materials and non-metals fell by 1.0%, that of fuel and power plants by 0.5%, and that of chemical raw materials by 0.4%. Ferrous materials prices rose 1.2 percent, while non-ferrous materials and electrical wires rose 0.9 percent.