— US Bureau of Labour Statistics
The US Import Price Index managed to post a larger-than-expected gain over the course of April, official data revealed on Wednesday. The US Bureau of Labour Statistics reported that the price index for US imports tacked on 0.5% in April, following the upwardly revised 0.1% uptick registered in the preceding month and beating analysts' expectations for a 0.2% increase. April's surge was mainly driven by higher fuel prices, which rose 1.6% over the month of April, following a 0.9% drop observed in March. A 1.6% hike in prices for petroleum and a 4% advance in natural gas prices appeared to be the main contributors to the increase in fuel prices. In the meantime, the price index for imports excluding fuel rose 0.3% in April, following an increase of 0.2% posted in the previous month. As reported by the US BLS, higher prices for food and beverages, industrial supplies and materials as well as an uptick in feeds managed to bolster the overall acceleration in nonfuel prices. Over the year, prices for US imports soared 4.1% in April, while export prices inched 3% higher over the same period.
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