Ireland [Ireland] - Wholesale Price Index





Ireland [Ireland]: Wholesale Price Index

Mnemonic WPI.IIRL
Unit 2010=100, SA
Adjustments Seasonally Adjusted
Monthly 1.36 %
Data Jan 2018 101.72
Dec 2017 103.12

Series Information

Source Central Statistics Office (CSO)
Release Wholesale Price Index [excerpt]
Frequency Monthly
Start Date 1/31/1957
End Date 1/31/2018

Ireland [Ireland]: Price

Reference Last Previous Units Frequency
Consumer Price Index (CPI) Dec 2020 101.4 101.1 Index Dec2016=100, NSA Monthly
Wholesale Price Index Jan 2018 101.72 103.12 2010=100, SA Monthly

Release Information

Ireland reports an "industrial producer price index" for domestic and export sales, and a "wholesale price index" for domestic production and imports. Monthly from 1995.

Wholesale Price Index

The industrial producer price index for a sector measures, in index form, changes in prices received by Irish manufacturers for goods fully or partially produced in Ireland and sold to the home and export markets by that sector. The other wholesale price index series incorporate imported and home produced goods sold by manufacturers and wholesale outlets. All constituent series are compiled using a Laspeyres type index formula. Identical items are priced each month so that changes in the cost of this constant basket reflect price changes only.

Uses of WPI

The indices are used by economists and expert users to evaluate and analyse developing price trends and as an indication of inflationary processes in the overall economy. The indices are used within the CSO for deflation purposes (e.g. deflation of the indices of production by National Accounts). The industrial producer price index, is used by Eurostat as a measure of short and medium term economic activity of the individual Member States of the EU and of the Union as a whole. The indices are also used in contracts by the building and construction industry as a measure of allowable price increases or decreases over the term of these contracts (i.e. elements of a contract price can be linked to the relevant index within the WPI).

Coverage

The output price indices for sectors of Manufacturing Industries cover both home sales and export sales. The Indices for Total transportable goods industries; Food, drink and tobacco; Manufacturing industries excluding food; Manufacturing industries excluding food, drink and tobacco; Intermediate goods industries (except energy); Capital goods industries; Durable consumer goods industries; Non-durable consumer goods industries; Manufacturing industries (home sales); Manufacturing industries (export sales) and Total manufacturing industries are all calculated on a net sector basis, i.e. the weights used to combine the sectoral indices (including those for sectors not distinguished in Table 2) exclude sales to other sectors of Manufacturing Industry.

Table 2A gives the percentage contribution of each sector (including those not published on Table 2) to the overall percentage change on Table 2. The percentage contributions on Table 2A may not add up to the Total Manufacturing industries percentage change on Table 2 due to rounding and other adjustments for presentational purposes. In comparing these contributions against these percentage changes in indices presented on Table 2 caution should be exercised as the former is calculated on a net sector basis.

The Building Materials, Capital Goods and Energy Products indices (Tables 3, 4 and 5) cover home production and imports of these commodities. Table 3, the Wholesale Price Index for Building and Construction Materials, provides only a general indication of price trends in that sector. Actual transaction prices are collected for materials purchased by construction and civil engineering firms. The price indices reflect an ‘average’ over a mixture of products from many companies throughout the country. They also reflect prices for both long-term and short-term contracts and for high and low volume civil engineering works. It should be noted that long-term, high volume fixed contracts for major works might dilute in the short-term the impact of emerging price changes on the index. Furthermore, industry sources have confirmed that price increases notified by companies may not always be achieved in practice following negotiations.

Much depends on the prevailing market conditions. Therefore changes over the short-term in the indices derived from these transaction prices will not always coincide with price changes notified by companies.

Prices

All indices in the series are based on prices at the 15th of the month. Quarterly and annual indices are simple averages of the corresponding monthly indices.

Prices used in the compilation of the indices are:

  • excluding delivery charges itemised on the invoice separately
  • after discounts or surcharges are applied
  • before addition of direct subsidies
  • exclusive of VAT (except for private vehicles used in Table 4)
  • inclusive of excise duty

Every effort is made by the Wholesale Prices Section to collect all prices for the relevant month. Where this is not possible late prices are included in the following month’s calculations.

Calculating percentage changes in the index

The movement of the output price indices is expressed as percentage change, rather than a change in index points, because index point changes are affected by the level of the index in relation to its base period, whereas percentage changes are not.