PPI Components Show Mixed Results; Mining Index Rises While Manufacturing Declines

• For November 2023, output prices for producers in the Mining and Quarrying industry increased by 0.4%, while those for the Manufacturing industry declined by 0.7%, according to yesterday’s release from the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN).
• The rise in the index for the major group ‘Bauxite and Alumina Processing’ accounted for the increase in the index for the Mining and Quarrying industry.
• For the Manufacturing industry, the reduction in the industry’s index was due mainly to a 4.0% decline in the index for ‘Refined Petroleum Products’ as fuel prices on the international market declined amid concerns over the projections for weaker economic growth in 2024. The overall reduction in the industry’s index was tempered by a 0.2% rise in the index for ‘Food, Beverages and Tobacco’.
• With November’s outturn, the index for the Mining & Quarrying industry has risen by 4.7% for the period November 2022 to November 2023.
• Over the same period, the point-to-point index for the Manufacturing industry increased by 2.1%. The major groups ‘Food, Beverages & Tobacco (2.3%)’. ‘Refined Petroleum Products’ (2.6%) and ‘Other Manufacturing n.e.c’ (10.1%) were the primary contributors to the movement. However, these increases were moderated by a decline of 4.3% in the index for the major group ‘Fabricated Metal Products excluding Machinery & Equipment’.
• The Producer Price Index (PPI) is a significant economic indicator that tracks the average fluctuation in selling prices that domestic producers of goods and services experience over time.

(Source: STATIN)