(202) 691-7705 This Release Is Embargoed — 2004-12-10

The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods advanced 0.5 percent in November, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This increase followed a 1.7-percent gain in October and a 0.1-percent rise in September. At the earlier stages of processing, the index for intermediate goods went up 0.8 percent, compared with a 0.9-percent rise in October, while prices for crude goods jumped 8.7 percent in November, after moving up 4.3 percent in the previous month. (See table A.) 2004 Jan. .6 -1.3 4.7 .3 3.3 .9 4.1 Feb. .1 .4 .3 -.1 2.1 1.0 1.5 Mar. .6 1.5 .6 .3 1.5 .8 1.6 Apr. .7 1.3 1.8 .1 3.7 1.4 1.8 May .6 1.5 1.3 .2 4.9 1.0 3.2 June -.2 -.4 -1.7 .3 4.0 .5 .7 July r 0 r -1.8 r 2.7 r -.2 r 3.8 r .5 r -.4 Aug.