Business Price Index: March 2017 quarter

This BPI release includes the March 2017 quarter PPI, CGPI, and FEPI data. Response rates for March 2017 quarter Key firms Achieved: 100 percent Target: 100 percent Non-key firms Achieved: 96.3 percent Target: 96 percent Annual update of weights After implementing the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification 2006 (ANZSIC06) in the March 2011 quarter, we update the producers price index (PPI) industry and commodity weights annually. We source the weights from the supply and use tables (SUT) produced annually as part of the New Zealand System of National Accounts. The weights associated with the commodities, and the weights attached to each industry, are therefore annually chain-linked. This reflects changes in economy-wide income and expenditure in the mix of products and the mix of industries. The new weights introduced in the March 2017 quarter are generally sourced from the 2013/14 SUT and expressed in the prices of the December 2016 quarter. We are using these weights to weight price movements from the December 2016 quarter to the March, June, September, and December 2017 quarters. Exchange rates The New Zealand dollar appreciated against four key currencies (US dollar, UK pound, Japanese yen and Euro) and depreciated against the Australian dollar, when comparing the mid-point of the March 2017 and December 2016 quarters. An appreciating NZ dollar has a downward influence on the prices New Zealand producers pay for imported goods and services, and the prices received for exports. When calculating the PPI and CGPI, we generally use prices collected on the 15th day of the middle month in the quarter to represent the entire quarter. When these prices are collected in foreign currencies, they are converted to NZ dollars using the exchange rate at the mid-point of the quarter. The table below shows changes in the value of the NZ dollar in foreign currency denominations, from the mid-point of the December 2016 quarter to the mid-point of the March 2017 quarter. Exchange rates Bank selling rates for NZ$1.00 USA (NZ$:US$) UK (NZ$:pound) Australia (NZ$:AUS$) Japan (NZ$:yen) Europe (NZ$:euro) 15 November 2016 0.6934 0.5542 0.9167 74.83 0.6425 15 February 2017 0.6989 0.5598 0.9123 79.64 0.6583 Percentage change 0.8 1.0 -0.5 6.4 2.5 Source: Westpac Banking Corporation For a limited number of prices (e.g. petroleum product manufacturing) we use quarterly average prices. For these prices, the relevant exchange-rate movements are based on the average exchange rate for the quarter. en-NZ