April 2020 U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes — 2020-05-14

U.S. import prices declined 2.6 percent in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, following a 2.4-percent decrease in March. Both monthly declines were led by falling fuel prices. Prices for U.S. exports fell 3.3 percent in April, after decreasing 1.7 percent the previous month. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Impact on April 2020 Import and Export Price Index Data The Bureau of Labor Statistics did not make any changes to either the collection method or estimation methodology for the April release of U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes. Survey response rates for April were 6.5 percentage points lower than those in April 2019. A small number of indexes that are normally published were not published in April. Additional information is available at www.bls.gov/bls/import-export-price-indexes-covid19-impacts-april-2020.htm. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ U.S. import prices fell 2.6 percent in April, the largest monthly drop since the index declined 3.2 percent in January 2015.