April 1997 U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes

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-APRIL 1997-

The U.S. Import Price Index decreased 0.9 percent in April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The monthly decline was the fourth in a row with both petroleum and nonpetroleum import prices contributing to the April drop. The U.S. Export Price Index declined 0.6 percent in April, led by falling agricultural export prices.

Import Goods

The April decline continued a downward trend, with import prices falling 3.2 percent over the past 12 months. For the third consecutive month, declining petroleum prices led the decrease, falling 3.8 percent in April after a 16.5 percent decline over the previous two months. Also contributing to the decline for all imports were nonpetroleum prices, down 0.6 percent in April, its largest monthly dip since December 1992 and the fourth monthly decline in a row. Over the past 12 months, the nonpetroleum index was down 2.5 percent.

Import prices for capital goods had the largest impact on the price index for nonpetroleum imports, declining 1.1 percent in April. Over the past twelve months, the index was down 5.7 percent following a 1.8 percent decline for the April 1995-96 period. Import prices for industrial supplies and materials excluding petroleum also continued a recent downturn, declining 0.6 percent last month after a 1.3 percent drop in March. The index for foods, feeds, and beverages fell 1.6 percent in April, a turnaround from the 3.0 and 1.9 percent gains posted over the previous two months. Import prices for automotive vehicles, parts, and engines dipped 0.2 percent last month after edging up 0.1 percent in March.

The price index for consumer goods was unchanged in April after dropping 0.6 percent in March.

Export Goods

The April decrease in export prices reversed the 0.3 percent advance recorded over the previous four months. The index dropped 2.2 percent over the past year. Agricultural export prices fell 6.7 percent in April, after posting gains of 1.4 percent in March and 2.1 percent in February. The large turnaround was attributable to falling prices for grains and oilseeds as soybeans dropped 19.6 percent, corn declined 19.3 percent, and wheat fell 13.9 percent after gains of 5.3, 1.8, and 2.7 percent respectively in March. In contrast, nonagricultural export prices edged up 0.1 percent in April, continuing a pattern of little or no movement over the past seven months.

The index for nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials recorded a 0.2 percent gain in April, after no change in March. The indexes for all the finished goods areas either rose slightly or were unchanged in April. The index for capital goods, which accounts for nearly one-half of U.S. exports, was unchanged. Capital goods prices have declined 0.5 percent over the past year. Export prices for automotive vehicles, parts, and engines were up 0.3 percent in April after rising 0.2 percent the previous month, while consumer goods prices inched up 0.1 percent last month.

Imports by Locality of Origin

The index for import prices from Japan continued its downward trend, falling 1.0 percent in April. (See table 7.) Import prices from Japan have declined for eight consecutive months and were down 5.5 percent over the past year.

The index for imports from Canada fell 0.3 percent in April, after falling 1.4 percent in March and 1.7 percent in February. For the April 1996-97 period, import prices from Canada were down 2.1 percent.

Import prices from the European Union also fell 0.3 last month, after decreasing in each of the previous two months. For the year ended in April, the index was down 1.2 percent.

In contrast, import prices from the Asian Newly Industrialized countries gained a modest 0.1 percent in April. Despite the increase, the index fell 2.7 percent over the past 12 months.