Import Prices:
- Prior month import prices 0.1% revised higher to 0.2%
- Import prices MoM for January 0.2% vs 0.2% expected
- Import Prices YoY x.x% vs 0.0% last month
Export Prices:
- Prior month export prices 0.3% revised higher to 0.6%
- Export prices MoM 0.6% vs 0.3%.
The U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes are released monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and measure how prices are changing for goods and services traded between the United States and the rest of the world.
Import prices track the average change in prices paid by U.S. buyers for goods and services purchased from foreign producers. Export prices measure the average change in prices received by U.S. producers for goods and services sold to foreign buyers.
The report is based on a representative basket of internationally traded products. Prices are collected from U.S. importers and exporters and are used to calculate index values that track price changes over time. The data are typically broken down into several categories, including overall import prices, import prices excluding fuel, fuel imports, export prices for agricultural products, and export prices for non-agricultural goods.
Economists and market participants watch the report because it provides insight into global inflation pressures, currency effects, and trade competitiveness. Rising import prices can signal increasing cost pressures for U.S. businesses and potentially feed into broader inflation, while export price changes help gauge the competitiveness of U.S. goods in global markets.
The indexes are also used in economic analysis to adjust trade data for inflation when calculating real imports, real exports, and GDP, making them an important tool for understanding the underlying trends in international trade.
