Finland's producer price inflation accelerated further in May to the highest level in more than three years, led by higher prices of refined petroleum products and utilities, data from Statistics Finland showed on Wednesday.
The producer price index climbed 7.4% year-on-year in May, faster than the 4.6% rise in April. Moreover, this was the fastest growth since February 2023, when prices rose 9.2%.
The rise in the producer prices was particularly caused by higher prices of refined petroleum products and electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning compared with last year's May, the agency said.
The annual price growth in mining and quarrying accelerated to 11.9% in May from 9.3% in April, and that in utilities quickened sharply to 17.9% from 1.0%.
On the other hand, the rise in the producer prices was curbed, especially by the decrease in prices of paper and paper products and other chemical products.
On a monthly basis, producer prices climbed 1.3%, following a 1.2% increase in April.
Separate official data showed that the jobless rate in the country climbed to 12.7% in May from 11.6% in April. A year ago, the unemployment rate was 10.5%. There were 376,000 unemployed people in May compared to 336,000 in the previous month.
