OREANDA-NEWS. On 03 April 2009 was announced, that Belarus’ producer price index (PPI) went up 2.2% on the month in February and 20.7% in January-February 2009, an official with the National Statistics Committee told.

Production facilities prices edged up 0.7%, intermediate materials 2.7%, and consumer goods 2.1%.

Prices rose 14% in ferrous metallurgy, 4.3% in the electrical power engineering, 2.4% in the woodworking and pulp-and-paper industry, 0.2% in the fuel industry, and 3% in the medical industry.

Prices also rose in the chemical industry 2.4%, in mechanical engineering and metalworking by 0.8%, the construction materials industry by 0.8%, the glass and porcelain industry by 1%, the light industry by 1.5%, the food industry by 2%, and in other industrial sectors by 2%.

Prices edged down 0.1% in the petrochemical industry.

Freight tariffs went up 5% in February 2009 over January. Automobile freight tariffs went up 6.3%, and railroad freight tariffs went up 5.5%, air transport tariffs rose 4.7%, and pipeline tariffs went up 2.1%.

Specialists believe producer prices will be growing much slower or even go down because of the weaker demand on the domestic market and necessity to empty stocks.

PPI rose 14.2% on the year in 2008 following the rise of 17.1% on the year in 2007.