German producer prices slip more than expected in August

German producer prices fell more than expected in August, according to data from Destatis.

Producer prices for industrial products fell 0.1% from July, versus expectations for a flat reading.

On the year, prices were down 1.6%, which was steeper than the 1.5% drop expected by economists.

Energy prices were the biggest drag, down 5.5% from the same month last year, while prices of intermediate goods fell by 1.6%.

Prices of non-durable consumer goods rose by 0.7%, prices of capital goods by 0.6% and prices of durable consumer goods by 1.2%.

Excluding energy, the overall index declined by 0.3% compared to August last year and was unchanged from July.

Dennis de Jong, managing director at UFX.com, said: “The last thing ECB president Mario Draghi needs at the moment is a slowing German economy, but today’s producer price index figures indicate that may just be the case.

“German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble may well be pleased to see an improvement from last month, but the key metric is still firmly rooted in negative territory which will cause concern for many observers of the single currency.”