US Markets
Singapore Producer Prices Surge Higher in April
Singapore's producer prices jumped higher in April, propelled by increases on global crude prices, reported Statistics Singapore on Friday.The city-state's manufactured products price index rose 20.2% on year in April, and gained 6.7% from March, said officials. The index measures prices at the factory gate of domestically produced goods.Singapore's manufactured products oil price sub-index rose 68.2% in April on year, and by 4.1% on month, reflecting surging global petroleum prices since the Strait of Hormuz was closed to tanker traffic in February.However, even Singapore's non-oil manufactured products price sub-index rose 21.4% on year in April, and by 7.3% from March, said Statistics Singapore.Chemical prices rose 28% on year in April, reflecting increases in the costs of oil and gas, from which chemicals are often derived.Statistics Singapore also produces a domestic supply price index, designed to measure prices of goods manufactured locally or imported, but which are retained for use in the domestic economy.The domestic supply price index rose 31.6% on year in April, and by 3.1% from March, reported the agency.Singapore's domestic oil supply index rose 79.3% on year in April, but slipped 1.6% in March.The city-state's non-oil domestic supply index rose 17.1% on year in April, and by 5.4% from March.The Monetary Authority of Singapore, the city-state's de facto central bank, is slated to release a policy statement and macroeconomic outlook on July 31.Despite recent increases in producer prices, Singapore's core consumer price index inflation eased to a 1.4% on-year rise in April, down from 1.7% in March. The headline inflation rate remained unchanged at 1.8% on year, in the month.The MAS does have an explicit inflation target, but bank literature refers to inflation near 2% or below as "stable."
^STI
