Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until					USDL-09-1238
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                              U.S. IMPORT AND EXPORT PRICE INDEXES - SEPTEMBER 2009

The U.S. Import Price Index edged up 0.1 percent in September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 
reported today, after a 1.6 percent increase in August. The September increase was led by higher nonfuel 
prices, which more than offset lower fuel prices. The price index for U.S. exports declined 0.3 percent in 
September following a 0.7 percent increase the previous month.

Imports

All Imports: Import prices ticked up 0.1 percent in September, led by a 0.6 percent increase in nonfuel 
prices. The price index for overall imports has only declined once since January, but despite the recent 
upward trend, import prices fell 12.0 percent for the year ended in September because of the sharp drop in 
the index at the end of 2008.   

Fuel Imports: Fuel prices decreased 1.8 percent in September following a 7.1 percent increase the 
previous month. The decline in fuel prices was partially driven by a 2.1 percent decline in crude prices; a 
16.5 percent drop in natural gas prices also contributed to the overall decrease. Fuel prices fell 34.4 
percent over the past year.  

All Imports Excluding Fuel: In contrast, nonfuel import prices rose 0.6 percent in September, the largest 
one-month gain since a similar 0.6 percent advance in July 2008. The September rise in the price index for 
nonfuel imports followed a 0.3 percent increase in August and higher prices for nonfuel industrial supplies 
and materials, finished goods and food all contributed to the advance. Despite the recent increases, nonfuel 
prices fell 4.1 percent over the past 12 months, driven by a 5.2 percent drop in the index from September 
2008 to March 2009. 


Table A. Percent changes










	
Month
	
IMPORTS
	
EXPORTS


	
All
imports
	
Fuel
imports
	
Nonfuel
imports
	
All
exports
	
Agri-
cultural
exports
	
Non-
agricultural
exports






	
2008
				




	
September
	
-3.6
	
-11.7
	
-0.5
	
-0.8
	
0.1
	
-0.9



	
October
	
-6.0
	
-20.8
	
-0.8
	
-2.1
	
-8.4
	
-1.4



	
November
	
-7.4
	
-27.8
	
-1.7
	
-3.2
	
-6.9
	
-2.8



	
December
	
-4.6
	
-22.2
	
-1.1
	
-2.2
	
-6.1
	
-1.9



	
2009
				




	
January
	
-1.3
	
-4.7
	
-0.7
	
0.7
	
5.9
	
0.3



	
February
	
0.0
	
2.7
	
-0.4
	
-0.3
	
-1.7
	
-0.2



	
March
	
0.5
	
7.8
	
-0.6
	
-0.7
	
-3.4
	
-0.4



	
April
	
1.1
	
7.5
	
0.1
	
0.5
	
3.7
	
0.2



	
May
	
1.7
	
9.8
	
0.2
	
0.4
	
3.6
	
0.3



	
June
	
2.7
	
16.0
	
0.2
	
1.0
	
4.2
	
0.6



	
July
	
-0.7
	
(r)-2.8
	
-0.2
	
-0.3
	
-4.9
	
(r)0.2



	
August
	
(r)1.6
	
(r)7.1
	
(r)0.3
	
0.7
	
0.2
	
(r)0.7



	
September
	
0.1
	
-1.8
	
0.6
	
-0.3
	
-2.8
	
0.0



	



	
Sept. 2007 to 2008
	
13.1
	
38.5
	
6.1
	
7.0
	
20.1
	
5.8



	
Sept. 2008 to 2009
	
-12.0
	
-34.4
	
-4.1
	
-5.6
	
-16.6
	
-4.4







	

		Footnotes

		(r) Revised

	






Exports

All Exports: Export prices fell 0.3 percent for the second time in three months in September after rising 
0.7 percent in August. The September downturn was led by falling agricultural prices. The price index for 
overall exports decreased 5.6 percent over the past year.      

Agricultural Exports: Prices for agricultural exports fell 2.8 percent in September and 16.6 percent over 
the past 12 months. Both declines were driven by falling prices for corn, soybeans, and wheat. Corn prices 
decreased 7.4 percent in September and 37.0 percent over the past year; prices for soybeans dropped 10.8 
percent for the month and 14.8 percent for the year ended in September; and the price index for wheat 
declined 12.1 percent in September and 38.5 percent over the past 12 months. 

All Exports Excluding Agriculture: Nonagricultural prices were unchanged in September following a 0.7 
percent increase in August. Finished goods prices rose overall, but those increases were offset by a fuel-
driven decline in nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials prices. The price index for 
nonagricultural exports fell 4.4 percent over the September 2008-2009 period. 



                                          SELECTED SEPTEMBER HIGHLIGHTS



Import Prices

Foods, Feeds, and Beverages: Foods, feeds, and beverages prices rose 0.4 percent in September after 
rising 1.3 percent the previous month. The September advance was led by higher vegetable prices which 
more than offset a drop in coffee prices. The increase in vegetable prices followed declines in each of the 
four previous months. 

Nonfuel Industrial Supplies and Materials: Nonfuel industrial supplies and materials prices rose 2.8 
percent and were driven by higher prices for unfinished metals that included copper, iron and steel mill 
products, aluminum, precious metals, nickel, and zinc. Chemical prices also increased in September, led 
by rising fertilizer prices. 

Finished Goods: Prices for each of the major finished goods areas-capital goods, consumer goods, and 
automotive vehicles-ticked up 0.1 percent in September after recording mixed price movement the 
previous month. Capital goods prices excluding computers were unchanged for the second consecutive 
month, but rising computer prices in September led the overall price index for capital goods up for the 
month.  

Imports by Locality of Origin: Prices for imports from Canada and the European Union increased 0.1 
percent and 0.5 percent, respectively, in September despite lower fuel prices. Manufactured articles led the 
increase for both indexes, rising 1.5 percent for import prices from Canada and 0.5 percent for prices for 
imports from the European Union. In contrast, the price index for imports from China edged down 0.1 
percent for the second time in three months in September after increasing 0.2 percent in August. 

Transportation Services: Import air passenger fares continued to trend downward in September, 
decreasing 1.1 percent. The decrease was led by lower Asian and Latin American/Caribbean fares. In 
contrast, air freight prices rose 0.7 percent.      


Export Prices

Nonagricultural Industrial Supplies and Materials: Nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials 
prices fell 0.2 percent in September following a 2.1 percent increase the previous month. A drop in fuel 
prices in September more than compensated for rising metals prices. 

Finished Goods: Capital goods prices and prices for consumer goods each edged up 0.1 percent in 
September while the price index for automotive vehicles was unchanged. The increase in capital goods 
prices was led by higher computer prices and rising prices for medicinal, dental, and pharmaceutical 
materials drove the rise in the price index for consumer goods. The price index for computers, peripherals, 
and semiconductors rose on a year-over-year basis for the first time since November 1990.

Transportation Services: Export air passenger fares fell 9.5 percent in September, led by sharp declines in 
European and Asian fares. The overall drop was a turnaround from August when export air passenger fares 
increased 9.1 percent. In contrast, the price index for export air freight advanced 0.8 percent.
		
Import and Export Price Index data for October 2009 are scheduled for release on Friday, November 
13, 2009 at 8:30 a.m. (EST).

                                         TECHNICAL NOTE


Import and Export Merchandise and Services Price Indexes -- All indexes use a modified Laspeyres 
formula and are not seasonally adjusted.  Price indexes for merchandise goods are reweighted annually, 
with a two-year lag in the weights.  Published series use a base year of 2000=100 where possible.  More 
detailed index series and additional information may be obtained at http://www.bls.gov/mxp, or by 
calling (202) 691-7101.

Merchandise Goods Classification Systems -- The merchandise price indexes are published using 
three classification systems.  Items are classified by end use according to the Bureau of Economic 
Analysis Classification System, by industry according to the North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS), and by product category according to the Harmonized System (HS).  While 
classification by end use and product category are self-explanatory, some notes are in order for 
classifying items by industry.  In the NAICS imports and exports tables, items are classified by output 
industry, not input industry.  As an example, NAICS import index 326 (plastics and rubber products 
manufacturing) include outputs such as manufactured plastic rather than inputs such as petroleum.  The 
NAICS classification structure also matches the classification system used by the PPI (Producer Price 
Index) to produce the NAICS primary products indexes.

Import Price Indexes -- Products have been classified by the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States Annotated (TSUSA).  Import prices are based on U.S. dollar prices paid by the U.S. importer.  
The prices are generally either "free on board" (f.o.b.) foreign port or "cost, insurance, and freight" 
(c.i.f.) U.S. port transaction prices, depending on the practices of the individual industry.  The index for 
crude petroleum is calculated from data collected by the U.S. Department of Energy.  

Export Price Indexes -- Products have been classified by the Harmonized Schedule B classification 
system of the U.S. Bureau of the Census.  The prices used are generally either "free alongside ship" 
(f.a.s.) factory or "free on board" (f.o.b.) transaction prices, depending on the practices of the individual 
industry.  Prices used in the grain index, excluding rice, are obtained from the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture.

Services Price Indexes -- Starting in September 2008 the Import Air Passenger Fares Indexes represent 
changes in the average revenue per passenger received by foreign carriers from U.S. residents and are 
calculated from data obtained from an airline consulting service.  These data include tickets sold by 
travel agencies and travel websites.  Tickets sold directly by the airlines are excluded, as are frequent 
flyer tickets generally.  Starting in January 2008 the Export Air Passenger Fares Indexes represent 
changes in the average revenue per passenger received by U.S. carriers from foreign residents and are 
calculated from data collected directly from airlines. These data include frequent flyer tickets and those 
sold by consolidators. Taxes and fees are included in the Import Air Passenger Fares Index and excluded 
from the Export Air Passenger Fares Index. The Air Freight Indexes are calculated from data collected 
directly from airlines. These data exclude mail and passenger baggage. The scope of the service being 
priced is the movement of freight from airport to airport only, and does not include any ground 
transportation or port service. The Air Freight Indexes are presented using two definitions: Balance of 
Payments (which represent transactions between U.S. and foreign residents) and International (which 
represent transactions inbound to and outbound from the U.S.). Fact sheets specifying detailed 
information for each services industry are available at http://www.bls.gov/mxp under "MXP 
Publications".

Import Indexes by Locality of Origin -- Prices used in these indexes are a subset of the data collected 
for the Import Price Indexes.  Beginning with January 2002, the indexes are defined by locality of origin 
using a nomenclature based upon the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).  
Nonmanufactured goods are defined as NAICS 11 and 21 and manufactured goods are defined as 
NAICS 31-33. 
 
Revision Policy -- To reflect the availability of late reports and corrections by respondents, monthly data 
may be revised in each of the three months after original publication.  After three months, no further data 
revisions take place.  So, for example, data released in the January release will be subject to revision in 
the releases for February, March, and April.

Uses of the Data -- The primary use of the indexes is to deflate trade statistics, notably the foreign trade 
sector of the National Income and Product Accounts constructed by the Department of Commerce.  
Other published indexes are useful for general market analysis.  For trade in international services, 
Balance of Payments indexes are used for deflating National Income and Product Accounts, while 
International indexes are more appropriate for market analysis.  Merchandise and services indexes also 
can be used to study U.S. competitiveness and to compute price elasticities, and the merchandise import 
indexes by country or region of origin are useful in terms of trade analysis.

E-Mail Subscription -- The IPP news release is available through an e-mail subscription service at 
(http://www.bls.gov/mxp) or (http://www.bls.gov/bls/newsrels.htm).
 
Additional Information -- More detailed IPP data are available on the IPP home page at 
(http://www.bls.gov/mxp).  Flat Files and the FTP server are available for users requiring access to 
either a large volume of time series data or other IPP-related documentation. The FTP site can be 
accessed at ftp://ftp.bls.gov.   For technical assistance in using the BLS Internet site, send e-mail to 
(labstat.helpdesk@bls.gov).  For IPP data requests, send e-mail to (mxpinfo@bls.gov). 

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