Declines in prices received by domestic producers of cars and light trucks

In 2005, prices received by domestic producers of passenger cars fell 3.4 percent, and prices received for light motor trucks dropped 5.9 percent. Both indexes advanced in 2003 and 2004.

[Chart data—TXT]

Domestic sales of automobiles produced in North America moved up 2.4 percent in 2005, their first increase since 1999. From 1999 to 2004, these sales had declined 23.4 percent.

In the light motor truck segment, however, sales inched down 0.6 percent in 2005 after advancing 4.0 percent in 2004 and 2.0 percent in 2003.

These data are from the BLS Producer Price Index program. Annual percent changes are December to December. Learn more in "Price highlights 2005: higher energy prices again dominate producer prices," by Joseph Kowal, Antonio Lombardozzi, William Snyders, and Jonathan Weinhagen, Monthly Labor Review, July 2006.