Supplier price increase: check it, answer it, negotiate it.

01Five steps

Five steps done in a quarter of an hour. Step 3 is done by the workbench.

1. Read the letterFrom when, how many percent, on which items, with what reason, by when do they want a reply? If the reason is missing, that is already the first point for your reply.
2. Check the contractIs there a fixed price, a price adjustment clause, a term? With a fixed price the supplier cannot change it unilaterally during the term. With an adjustment clause the index is the yardstick, not the demand.
3. Compare with official figuresEurostat publishes producer prices for every industry in Germany every month, for services every quarter, plus labour costs. The workbench puts the demand next to these figures: market since your last agreement, demand, gap in percentage points and in euros.
4. Write the replyNo agreement without a breakdown: which cost item rose by how much, with what share of the price? Plus your counter-offer based on the index. The workbench writes the letter with figures and source.
5. Secure a return and set a follow-upFor every concession a return: fixed price for twelve months, index clause from the next contract, review in six months. Put the date in the deadline tracker.

02What the supplier may do

• Running contract with a fixed price: the price holds until the end of the term. An increase needs your consent or a clause that provides for it.
• Contract with a price adjustment clause: the clause sets date, yardstick and amount. The yardstick is usually an official index. Check whether the demand follows the index.
• Framework agreement or recurring orders without a fixed price: the supplier can quote new prices for future orders. You can accept, negotiate or order elsewhere. Goods already ordered keep the agreed price.
• Continuing services (maintenance, cleaning, software): without a clause an increase needs your consent or a termination with offer of new terms at the next notice date.
• Silence: reply in writing and within the deadline. In business dealings silence can in some cases count as consent, especially with letters of confirmation. A short, reasoned reply costs nothing.
• This is orientation, not legal advice. For large amounts or unclear clauses a lawyer’s view pays off.

03Worked example

Based on the index an adjustment of 2.3 percent is justified, that is €920. The gap of €2,880 per year is your negotiation target. With the workbench licence the check adds the negotiation dossier: a staged counter-offer, the supplier’s counter-arguments with your reply and the talk guide.

See the example: 9.5 % more for packaging

04Sample letter

Dear Sir or Madam,

Thank you for your notice of a price adjustment. You are requesting an increase of 9.5 %.

We have compared the request with the official price trend. The producer price index for “Paper, board, packaging” in Germany (Eurostat, sts_inpp_m, C17) rose by 2.3 % from October 2025 to August 2026. Your request is therefore 7.2 percentage points above the market trend.

Before we agree, we ask for a traceable breakdown: which cost items rose by how much, and what share do they have in your price? Based on the market trend we currently consider an adjustment of at most 2.3 % justified.

For future adjustments we propose a price adjustment clause based on this index.

Kind regards

The workbench writes this letter with your figures, your industry and the current state of the index. With the licence with your letterhead, as Word and PDF.

05Questions and answers

06Sources

• Eurostat, producer prices in industry (sts_inpp_m), Germany, monthly
• Eurostat, producer prices in services (sts_sepp_q), Germany, quarterly
• Eurostat, labour cost index (lc_lci_r2_q), Germany, quarterly
• Federal Statistical Office of Germany, producer price index for industrial products

The workbench fetches the chosen index directly from Eurostat. Demand, supplier and letter are created in your browser and never leave it.

Guide by Dario Kulić, KULIC Advisory, Cologne. Twenty years of purchasing in large companies. Not legal advice. Last updated: October 2026.