July 2010 U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes — 2010-08-12

U.S. import prices increased 0.2 percent in July, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, following declines in each of the two previous months. The advance was led by higher fuel prices, which more than offset a second consecutive drop in nonfuel prices. In contrast, export prices decreased in July, falling 0.2 percent after falling 0.7 percent in June. All Imports: Import prices ticked up 0.2 percent in July following declines of 1.3 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively, in the previous two months. Despite the July increase, the index fell 2.0 percent over the past quarter, the largest three-month decline since the quarter ended in February 2009. The price index for overall imports rose 4.9 percent for the year ended in July. Fuel Imports: The increase in import prices was driven by a 2.1 percent advance in fuel prices.