The Sultanate's producer price index (PPI)-based inflation rose by 7.5% in the first quarter of 2019, compared to the same period of last year due to a surge in oil and gas prices, according to the latest statistics released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

The price of oil and gas products increased by 9.5%, while those of non-oil products fell by 1.9% in the first quarter of 2019, over the same period of last year. Among oil and gas group, prices of crude oil and natural gas rose by 11.5%, while prices of refined oil products fell by 1.4% in the first quarter of 2019, compared to the same period of the previous year.  In the non-oil group, the prices of the manufacturing group and the prices of mining, electricity and water group index fell by 2.1% and 1.3%, respectively. Among different sub-groups in the manufacturing group, the prices of most of the product groups fell at varying degrees. The producer prices of the food, beverages and textiles products group increased by 2.0%, whereas transportable goods fell by 4.9%. In the food, beverages and textiles products group, the price of beverages rose by 14.8%; bakery and other food products by 2.2%; whereas there was a decline in fish, fruits, vegetables and oils by 4.1%; clothing, textiles and footwear by 2%, and dairy products by 1.1%, added the NCSI report.  The price of paints and pharmaceutical products rose by 2.4%; rubber and plastic products by 2.2% and wood and paper products by 0.9%, whereas a decline was witnessed in the prices of chemical products by 10.8%; glass, cement and marble products by 3.5%; and furniture products, jewellery and iron products by 0.6%, the NCSI bulletin showed.

The price index of metal products, machinery and equipment in the first quarter of 2019 showed no change compared to the same period of 2018. There was a growth in prices of distribution and delivery of electricity apparatus, recording tapes and CDs by 6.9%, and prices of fabricated products of steel or aluminum by 1.8%. Whereas prices of raw products of steel or aluminum fell by 7.1%.