The Producer Price Index for Manufacturing recorded a decrease of 29.8 per cent for February 2016 when compared to the previous month.
According to data produced by the Barbados Statistical Service, a decrease was recorded in the index for Beverages of 74.7 per cent; Other Manufacturing of 11.5 per cent; and Other Non-Metallic Mineral Products of 1.2 per cent.
The index for Food Products recorded an increase of 0.6 per cent, in addition to Fabricated Metal Products, except Machinery and Equipment, of 0.3 per cent and Petroleum and Chemical Products of 0.1 per cent.
The following price indices remained unchanged from January to February 2016: Wearing Apparel; Printing and Reproduction of Recorded Media; Rubber and Plastics Products and Furniture.??Between February 2015 and February 2016, the Producer Price Index decreased by 3.1 per cent from 106.1 to 102.8 points.
The index for the Food Production Sector increased by 0.6 per cent at the end of February 2016, when compared to the previous month. There was a decline in the sub-group indices for Dairy Products of 6.7 per cent, processing and preserving of fish, crustaceans and molluscs of 1.9 per cent.
The year-on-year index for Beverages for February recorded a small decrease of 1.1 per cent due to a decrease in the sub-group index for distilling, rectifying and blending of spirits of 15.4 per cent, in addition to the sub-group index of soft drinks: production of mineral waters and other bottled waters, of 26.6 per cent.
In the area of Other Non-Metallic Mineral Products, the comparison of the prices for February 2015 and February 2016 in this sector showed a decrease of 18.3 per cent. This decrease resulted from a decline of 37.8 per cent in cement, lime and plaster, in addition to the articles of concrete, cement and plaster sub-group of 2.5 per cent.
The year-on-year price index for Fabricated Metal Products, except machinery and equipment, declined by 10.6 per cent. This was attributed to the sub-group indices for Structural Metal Products of 14.1 per cent and forging, pressing, stamping and roll-forming of metal; powder metallurgy of 13.5 per cent. An increase was recorded for Other Fabricated Metal Products of 9.9 per cent.