Press release No. 256 of 30 June 2023

Import prices, May 2023
-9.1% on the same month a year earlier
-1.4% on the previous month

Export prices, May 2023
+0.1% on the same month a year earlier
-0.4% on the previous month

WIESBADEN – Import prices were 9.1% lower in May 2023 compared with May 2022. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reports that this represents the largest year-on-year decrease in prices recorded since September 2009 (-11.4% from September 2008), when prices fell sharply as a result of the financial crisis. The decline is primarily due to a base effect originating from the high price level in 2022 as a result of the war in Ukraine. The year-on-year rate of change for import prices was already -7.0% in April 2023, and -3.8% in March 2023. Compared with April 2023, import prices were down 1.4% in May 2023.

Export prices in May 2023 were virtually unchanged (+0.1%) compared with the same month a year earlier, and were down 0.4% month on month.

Drop in import prices due to much lower energy prices

Energy imports in May 2023 cost 37.6% less than in May 2022, the third month after the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, and were 6.4% less expensive than in April 2023. This was a significant contributor to the decline in the overall index compared with the same month a year earlier and the previous month. Natural gas had the biggest influence on the year-on-year rate of change for energy, with prices in May 2023 39.7% lower than they were in May 2022. Compared with April 2023, they were down 5.3%.

All other imported energy sources were also considerably less expensive than in the same month a year earlier: the prices of electricity fell by 53.9%, hard coal by 53.2%, mineral oil products by 35.9%, and crude oil by 31.4%.

When energy prices are excluded, import prices in May 2023 were 1.7% lower than in May 2022. They were down 0.6% compared with April 2023. If only crude oil and mineral oil products are not considered, the import price index was 6.3% below the level of the previous year (-0.9% compared with April 2023).

Import prices for intermediate goods decreased by 8.2% compared with May 2022 (-1.2% compared with April 2023).

In contrast prices for consumer goods and capital goods increased by 3.5% and 4.1% compared with May 2022.

Increase in prices of exported capital and consumer goods

The index of export prices was only 0.1% higher in May 2023 than in May 2022. In April 2023 and March 2023, the year-on-year rate of change stood at +1.1% and +2.3%, respectively. Compared with April 2023, export prices were down 0.4% in May 2023.

Capital goods were exported at prices which had increased 5.2% year on year (+0.3% from April 2023). Higher prices than in May 2022 were recorded especially for machinery (+7.5%), motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers (+3.9%). Capital goods account for roughly 46% of total exports.

The prices of exported consumer goods were also higher than a year earlier (+4.7%).

By contrast, the prices of exported intermediate goods dropped by 1.7% compared with May 2022.

Energy export prices were 39.3% lower in May 2023 than a year earlier. Compared with April 2023, energy prices decreased by 7.1%. As with import prices, this was due to lower natural gas prices. They were down 42.9% year on year in May 2023 and also declined from the previous month’s level (-3.9%).
Mineral oil products, too, cost less than a year earlier (-32.1%). Here prices fell by 6.0% compared with April 2023.

More information:

Long time series are also available in the tables on the index of import prices (61411-0002 and 61411-0006) and index of export prices (61421-0002 and 61421-0006) of the GENESIS-Online database.

Import price indices are also available on Dashboard Germany (www.dashboard-deutschland.de) (only in German). This data portal of the Federal Statistical Office combines up-to-date indicators from official statistics producers and other data providers on the topics of the economy, finance, health and mobility. The portal also contains the Economic Pulse Monitor tool (Pulsmesser für die Wirtschaft) (only in German) for real-time economic monitoring.