As reported by the Federal Statistical Office, the consumer price index for Germany rose by 1.9 percent from May 2005 to May 2006. Compared with April 2006, the index was up 0.2 percent.
In April 2006, the year-on-year rate of price change was +2.0 percent. The estimate for May 2006 based on the results from six Länder was thus confirmed.
In May 2006, too, energy prices had an upward effect on the year-on-year rate of price increase, as has been the case for over two years now (since April 2004): Not considering energy (household energy and motor fuels), the rate would have been just +0.7 percent.
Energy prices in May 2006 were 13.7 percent above the level of May 2005, which means that, in purely mathematical terms, they account for more than half of the total rate of price increase compared with May 2005.
Especially domestic fuel prices rose above average (+28.9 percent) on a year earlier. Motor fuel prices were up 12.7 percent in May 2006 on May 2005 (including regular petrol: +13.3 percent; supergrade petrol: +13.1 percent).
For the other household energies, too, prices were again clearly above the level of a year earlier (gas: +19.8 percent; charges for central and remote heating: +18.0 percent; electricity: +3.8 percent).
In the short-term comparison, energy prices on average rose just slightly on April 2006 (+0.4 percent; including domestic fuel and motor fuels: +0.5 percent each).
The rise in the tobacco tax of September 2005 will continue to affect the consumer price index until August 2006. The year-on-year rate of price increase for tobacco products in May 2006 was 6.0 percent, while the sub-index remained unchanged on April 2006.
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