U.S. Import And Export Price Indexes — 2006-05-12

The U.S. Import Price Index rose 2.1 percent in April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The increase was led by the largest rise in petroleum prices in over a year. Export prices advanced 0.6 percent, the fifth consecutive monthly increase for the index. Percent changes in import and export price indexes by End Use category -not seasonally adjusted- Month Non- Agri- Nonagri- All Petroleum petroleum All cultural cultural Imports Imports Imports Exports Exports Exports Import prices increased 2.1 percent in April after declines of 0.6 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively, in February and March. The advance was driven by an 11.5 percent jump in petroleum prices which followed a comparatively modest 0.5 percent rise the previous month. The April increase in petroleum prices was the largest for the index since a 13.4 percent rise in March 2005. Petroleum prices rose 32.5 percent over the past 12 months.