Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Central Statistics Office, Skehard Road, Cork, T12 X00E, Ireland.
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
30 June 2026
2.2. Metadata last posted
30 June 2026
2.3. Metadata last update
30 June 2026
3.1. Data description
The industrial producer price index for a sector measures, in index form, changes in prices received by Irish manufacturers for goods fully or partially produced in Ireland and sold to the home and export markets by that sector.
3.2. Classification system
NACE Rev. 2.
3.3. Coverage - sector
Local Units in NACE Rev. 2 Divisions 05-35 (Sections B, C and D).
Data on E36 is currently not collected. The weight share of E36 is currently below 0.5% of BTE36 and prices in E36 water treatment are stable. So the aggregate BTE36 is based on the BTD index.
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
The producer price index covers products that are manufactured in Ireland and sold to the domestic and export market.
Output prices include special taxes, transport costs, discounts and other reductions, and customs duties.
Initial weightings used in the compilation of the index are taken from the Census of Industrial Production indices and are compiled for the domestic, non-domestic, and total market. This is not published at a NACE level but is provided to Eurostat.
3.5. Statistical unit
The sampling units are the kind of activity (KAU) level to reflect the source of weights for the 2021 series in the NACE Rev. 2 Divisions 05-35 (Sections B, C and D) as listed in 3.3.
Within these units, prices for a sample of products are collected.
3.6. Statistical population
The statistical population is all enterprises whose main business activity is classified to one of the Nace Rev. 2 codes listed in section 3.3. There were approximately 16,000 active enterprises in these sectors in 2021 when the sampling frame covering 2025 was determined.
3.7. Reference area
The Republic of Ireland
3.8. Coverage - Time
Data from the current series are available from January 2021. Previous series are also available nationally as a data source since 1975.
3.9. Base period
2021=100
Index
Month
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
The Wholesale Price Inquiry is a statutory statistical survey conducted each month under the provisions of the Statistics (Producer Prices Survey) Order 2019 (S.I. No. 2 of 2023) made under the Statistics Act, 1993.
The survey is also conducted in compliance with EBS Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of 27 November 2019, the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/1704 of 14 July 2021 and Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197 of 30 July 2020.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
Section 34 of the 1993 Statistics Act states. The Office may provide, for statistical purposes only, information obtained in any way under this Act or the repealed enactments, in such form that it cannot be directly or indirectly related to an identifiable person or undertaking, to such persons and subject to such charges, conditions and restrictions as the Director General may determine.
Data is shared with Eurostat as provided for under the relevant European legislation.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
The provision on statistical confidentiality is regulated by Sections 32 and 33 of the 1993 Statistics Act.
Section 32 states:
No information obtained in any way under this Act or the repealed enactments which can be related to an identifiable person or undertaking shall, except with the written consent of that person or undertaking or the personal representative or next-of-kin of a deceased person, be disseminated, shown or communicated to any person or body except as follows:
for the purposes of a prosecution for an offence under this Act;
to officers of statistics in the course of their duties under this Act;
for the purposes of recording such information solely for the use of the Office in such form and manner as is provided for by a contract in writing made by the Director General which protects its confidentiality to his satisfaction.
The Office may, for statistical purposes only, assign codes derived from information collected under this Act classifying undertakings listed in the administrative systems of other public authorities by economic activity and size (persons engaged) categories.
The Taoiseach may by order prescribe such further prohibitions on the disclosure of identifiable records or information obtained under this Act or the repealed enactments for such periods as may be prescribed.
Nothing in this Act shall be construed to require any person or undertaking to provide information in relation to a matter on which information was sought in circumstances that would entitle the person or undertaking to decline to give the information in a civil proceeding in any court or on grounds of privilege.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
Confidential data are treated by suppression.
8.1. Release calendar
A four month in advance release calendar showing release dates on a “no later than” basis is issued by the CSO at the end of each month. This is available on the CSO website.
An email link to the statistical release or publication is issued to interested parties at 11.00 am. In addition the full text of all releases and publications is made available on the CSO website at 11.00am. Data are transmitted to Eurostat by SDMX after publication.
Monthly
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
None.
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
Data on the Industrial Producer Price Index is released monthl at the Central Statistics Office website (Wholesale Price Index)
A Producer Price Index Research Microdata File (RMF) is available to researchers subject to meeting criteria as set out in the Policy on access to Research Microdata Files.
10.5. Dissemination format - other
Data are sent to Eurostat to be used in European aggregates and/or to be released as national data.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
Overall information for the Wholesale Price Index which includes the PPI is available via the following website Central Statistics Office (Wholesale Price Index).
The Standard Report on Methods and Quality for Wholesale Price Index which includes the PPI is available on the website Central Statistics Office (Current Quality reports).
11.1. Quality assurance
Percentage coverage within each NACE heading is estimated annually for domestic and export sales. PRODCOM data is compared with quotations to ensure that an enterprise's main products are included in the survey. Non-respondents and late respondents are contacted to resolve difficulties where possible. Unusual price changes are investigated each month. Quality information is not published.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
The main quality issue is ensuring that the sample of respondents and products remains representative in between base years.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
The indices are used by economists and expert users to evaluate and analyse developing price trends and as an indication of inflationary processes in the overall economy. The indices are used within the CSO for deflation purposes (e.g. deflation of the indices of production by National Accounts). The industrial producer price index is used by Eurostat as a measure of short and medium term economic activity of the individual Member States of the EU and of the Union as a whole.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
Not available.
12.3. Completeness
Eurostat requirements fulfilled.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
CSO has not estimated the overall accuracy of the industrial producer price index.
13.2. Sampling error
Due to the nature of the sample (sample kind of activity units from the population of all such units, and non-probability sample of products within each unit) the sampling error for the index has not been estimated.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Non-response error is minimised by following up with non-respondents using telephone or e-mail contacts.
The unweighted unit response rate (proportion of units responding) for the respondents in the Wholesale Prices Survey who provide data for Producer Price Indices during 2025 was 47.0%.
Other types of non-sampling error have not been estimated.
14.1. Timeliness
Prices invoiced on the 15th of the reference month are requested. Questionnaires are sent to reporting units on the 15th or the following day or two. Data collection is closed eight working days before publication.
The release is published on or about the 22nd of the month for the previous month. It is considered definitive on publication.
14.2. Punctuality
The timeliness target is achieved every month with rare exceptions.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
It is possible to compare the Irish indices with those of other European countries using the Nace Rev. 2 industry classification system.
15.2. Comparability - over time
There are no breaks in the series.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
There is no direct comparability with other prices.
15.4. Coherence - internal
Aggregates are consistent with their sub-aggregates.
Results are generally not revised unless exceptional calculation errors are discovered. The same revision policy is applied nationally and in transmissions to Eurostat. No revision calendar exists. No benchmarking is done at the aggregate level.
17.2. Data revision - practice
The WPI 2021=100 series which includes the PPI has had no revisions.
Over the 36 months January 2023 - December 2025 of the 2021 = 100 series
the Mean Absolute Revision (MAR) = 0.
the Mean Revision (MR) = 0.
18.1. Source data
Data collection is based on a sample survey using Central Business Register as the frame. Local units in NACE sectors B and C are in scope. A canvas form is issued to respondents when they are first selected into the sample. On this survey form, they are asked to self-select a sample of their most important products. In subsequent months, they are sent a survey form requesting up-to-date prices for this product sample. The sample of local units and products is updated on an ongoing basis.
For Sector D, wholesale price of electricity on the Integrated Single Electricity Market for Ireland and Northern Ireland (SEMO) is used for NACE 351.
SEMO launched a new market on October 1st 2018 and this required changes to the calculation of the CSO's electricity index. From January 2019 onwards, only the Day Ahead Single Market Price was used in the index, and the Pass Through costs for Generation (i.e. Capacity Payments, Market Operators Costs and Imperfection Changes) were not included. The Day Ahead Single Market Price is sourced from the Single Electricity Market Operator's (SEMO) website.
The Electricity Index (NACE 351) is used as the basis for the Sector D Producer Price index. This is due to the small weight of NACE 352 compared to 351 in Sector D, and the strong relationship between gas and electricity prices, due to the use of gas in the production of electricity. NACE 353 has a negligible weight in the overall Sector D.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Monthly
18.3. Data collection
Data are primarily collected by electronic questionnaire, with supplemental data collection by paper forms, telephone and email
18.4. Data validation
Edits compare values against previous returns (range checks). If differences exceed specified thresholds, an edit is raised. These are then analysed and records are corrected as appropriate.
18.5. Data compilation
Prices are regarded as unchanged for non-response.
The basic indices are weighted by the value of sales of an economic sector.
The industrial producer price index for a sector measures, in index form, changes in prices received by Irish manufacturers for goods fully or partially produced in Ireland and sold to the home and export markets by that sector.
30 June 2026
The producer price index covers products that are manufactured in Ireland and sold to the domestic and export market.
Output prices include special taxes, transport costs, discounts and other reductions, and customs duties.
Initial weightings used in the compilation of the index are taken from the Census of Industrial Production indices and are compiled for the domestic, non-domestic, and total market. This is not published at a NACE level but is provided to Eurostat.
The sampling units are the kind of activity (KAU) level to reflect the source of weights for the 2021 series in the NACE Rev. 2 Divisions 05-35 (Sections B, C and D) as listed in 3.3.
Within these units, prices for a sample of products are collected.
The statistical population is all enterprises whose main business activity is classified to one of the Nace Rev. 2 codes listed in section 3.3. There were approximately 16,000 active enterprises in these sectors in 2021 when the sampling frame covering 2025 was determined.
The Republic of Ireland
Month
CSO has not estimated the overall accuracy of the industrial producer price index.
Index
Prices are regarded as unchanged for non-response.
The basic indices are weighted by the value of sales of an economic sector.
Data collection is based on a sample survey using Central Business Register as the frame. Local units in NACE sectors B and C are in scope. A canvas form is issued to respondents when they are first selected into the sample. On this survey form, they are asked to self-select a sample of their most important products. In subsequent months, they are sent a survey form requesting up-to-date prices for this product sample. The sample of local units and products is updated on an ongoing basis.
For Sector D, wholesale price of electricity on the Integrated Single Electricity Market for Ireland and Northern Ireland (SEMO) is used for NACE 351.
SEMO launched a new market on October 1st 2018 and this required changes to the calculation of the CSO's electricity index. From January 2019 onwards, only the Day Ahead Single Market Price was used in the index, and the Pass Through costs for Generation (i.e. Capacity Payments, Market Operators Costs and Imperfection Changes) were not included. The Day Ahead Single Market Price is sourced from the Single Electricity Market Operator's (SEMO) website.
The Electricity Index (NACE 351) is used as the basis for the Sector D Producer Price index. This is due to the small weight of NACE 352 compared to 351 in Sector D, and the strong relationship between gas and electricity prices, due to the use of gas in the production of electricity. NACE 353 has a negligible weight in the overall Sector D.
Monthly
Prices invoiced on the 15th of the reference month are requested. Questionnaires are sent to reporting units on the 15th or the following day or two. Data collection is closed eight working days before publication.
The release is published on or about the 22nd of the month for the previous month. It is considered definitive on publication.
It is possible to compare the Irish indices with those of other European countries using the Nace Rev. 2 industry classification system.
