The Sultanate's producer price index (PPI)-based inflation rose by 17.7 percent in the second quarter of 2018, over the same period of last year, mainly driven by a surge in oil and gas prices by 20.6 percent and non-oil products prices by 5.5 percent according to the latest statistics released by the Centre.
Among oil and gas products, refined products shot up by 39 percent, while crude oil and natural gas price soared by 17.9 percent. Among non-oil products, the prices of the manufacturing group rose by 7.5 percent in the second quarter, while there was a one percent fall in the prices of mining, electricity and water group index. Among different sub-groups in the manufacturing sector, the prices of most of the product groups rose at varying degrees. Metal products, machinery and equipment recorded an increase of 18.2 percent and transportable goods by 5.3 percent, while producer prices of the food, beverages and textile products marginally increased by 0.8 percent. The price index of food, beverages & textiles products group mainly driven by a growth in prices of "beverages products" by 10.1 percent, "dairy products" by 6.4 percent, "bakery and other food products" by 0.3 percent. While prices of "fish, fruit, vegetables & oils products" and "clothing, textiles & footwear products" fall by 6.6 percent and one percent respectively.
Among transportable goods group, producer price index of "gases, acids and polypropylene products" rose by 12.3 percent, "rubber and plastic products" by 7.1 percent, "wood and paper products" by 2.9 percent and "products of furniture, jewellery manufacturing & anti-melted metal waste" by 0.3 percent. This was in contrast to the decline in the prices of "paints and pharmaceutical products" by 3.2 percent and "products of glass, cement and marble" by 0.1 percent, the NCSI bulletin said. The price index of metal, machinery and equipment group mainly driven by a growth in prices of "raw metals and steel/aluminum products" by 25 percent, "distribution and delivery of electricity apparatus and recording tapes and CDs" by 21.3 percent and "fabricated products of steel or aluminum" by 1.4 percent.
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