German import prices rise at the fastest pace in nearly six years in February

German import prices rise more-than-expected in February, figures from Destatis showed Wednesday. Germany's import prices were up 7.4 percent year-on-year in February, the highest rise since April 2011, when prices surged 7.6 percent.

The rise beat economists' forecasts for an annual growth of 7 percent and compared to a rise of 6 percent in January and 3.5 percent in December. Excluding crude oil and mineral oil products, import prices increased 4.5 percent from prior year in February.

Month-on-month, import prices rose 0.7 percent in February after climbing 0.9 percent in January, but faster than the expected 0.4 percent rise. On a monthly basis, export prices gained 0.2 percent. Export prices climbed 2.5 percent in February from the same period of previous year, faster than January's 1.8 percent increase.