U.S. import prices advanced 1.1% for 2 consecutive month in September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, after falling the previous four months. The increase in each of the past two months was led by rising fuel prices. The price index for U.S. exports rose 0.8% in September following a 1.0% advance in August.
All Imports: Import prices rose 1.1% in September following a 1.1% advance the previous month. Those were the first monthly increases for the index since a 1.4% rise in March. Higher fuel prices were the largest contributor to the September advance in overall import prices, although nonfuel prices increased as well.
The price index for import fuels increased 4.4% after rising 5.7% in August. The September rise in fuel prices was led by a 4.6% increase in petroleum prices. In contrast, natural gas prices fell 0.3%. For the year ended in September, import fuel prices decreased 1.3% as declining prices prior to the past two months more than offset the increases in August and September.
Nonfuel import prices rose 0.2% in September, the first monthly advance for the index since a 0.2% rise in April, as higher food and finished goods prices more than offset declining prices for nonfuel industrial supplies and materials. The price index for nonfuel imports declined 0.5% for the year ended in September.