Definition: Wholesale price index
OECD terminology
Wholesale price indices refer to prices received by the wholesalers while producer price indices refer to prices do not take into account the organisation of the distribution chain. Many commodities are now sold through many different channels of which wholesale is a part. Moreover, wholesale prices include commercial mark-ups which are not included in producer prices.
For some countries the name Producer price index replaced the name Wholesale price index in the 1970s or 1980s after a change in methodology. For some countries, the name Wholesale price index is used for historical reasons and in fact refers to a price index following the same methodology as for a Producer price index.
Source:
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), "Producer Price Indices: Sources and Methods", OECD, Paris, 1994, quoted in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), "Measuring the Non-Observed Economy - A Handbook", OECD, Paris, 2002
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