(202) 606-7705 This Release Is Embargoed — 1996-12-11

The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods advanced 0.4 percent in November, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of U. S. Department of Labor reported today. This followed a 0.4-percent increase in October and a 0.2-percent rise in September. Prices received by domestic producers of intermediate goods rose 0.2 percent in November after registering no change in the prior month. The Crude Goods Price Index advanced 1.8 percent, which followed a 0.6-percent decline in October. (See table A.) Among finished goods in November, increases in the indexes for finished energy goods and for finished goods less foods and energy offset a decline in the index for finished consumer foods. Prices for finished goods less foods and energy turned up 0.1 percent after falling 0.3 percent in the prior month. Table A.