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Economy in Brief
Japan’s Trade Surplus Returns Even As Trade Flows Slow
While the IMF has just lifted its outlook for growth in 2018, Japan is logging weaker and weaker export and import growth as the year progresses...
U.S. Industrial Production Strengthens; Factory Output Ticks Higher
The Fed reported that industrial production increased 0.5% (4.3% y/y) during March...
U.S. Housing Starts and Building Permits Recover
Total housing starts in March increased 1.9% to 1.319 million units (SAAR)...
U.S. Gasoline and Crude Oil Prices Strengthen
Retail gasoline prices rebounded to $2.75 per gallon last week (22.8% y/y)...
ZEW Expectations Take a Dive: From Fear to Eternity
Current conditions indexes in the ZEW framework usually do not change by much month-to-month...
by Tom Moeller March 9, 2017
Import prices edged 0.2% higher (4.6% y/y) during February following a 0.6% January increase, revised from 0.4%. A 0.1% uptick had been expected in the Action Economics Forecast Survey. These figures are not seasonally adjusted.
Petroleum import prices eased 0.7%, though they remained three-quarters higher y/y. Nonpetroleum import prices improved 0.3% (0.8% y/y), the largest increase since July. Industrial supplies & materials prices excluding petroleum jumped 1.4% (7.0% y/y), strong for the fourth straight month. Foods, feeds & beverage prices rebounded 1.0% last month (4.4% y/y), following declines in three of the prior four months. Nonauto consumer goods prices improved 0.7%, but the y/y decline accelerated to -0.7%. Motor vehicle & parts prices remained unchanged both m/m and y/y, after declines in the prior two months. Capital goods prices also were steady (-1.0% y/y) after declining from 2013 through 2016.
Export prices improved 0.3% following a 0.2% rise. The y/y increase of 3.1% follows declines in the last four years. A 0.1% uptick had been expected.
Agricultural commodity prices jumped 1.4% (1.6% y/y), the strongest gain since June. Nonagricultural export prices improved 0.3% last month, and the y/y increase surged to 3.3% after declines dating back to 2012. Foods, feeds & beverage prices jumped 1.4% (1.9% y/y), also after years of decline. Industrial supplies & materials costs gained 0.3% (11.5% y/y) as petroleum prices strengthened 41.0% y/y. Nonagricultural supplies & materials prices excluding fuels & building materials jumped 1.5% m/m (4.4% y/y) after sharp declines dating back to 2012. Capital goods prices improved 0.3% (0.6% y/y), but computer & peripheral product prices declined 3.1% y/y. Motor vehicle & parts prices remained unchanged (-0.2% y/y). Nonauto consumer goods prices eased 0.2% and the y/y decline accelerated to -2.6%.
The import and export price series can be found in Haver's USECON database. Detailed figures are available in the USINT database. The expectations figure from the Action Economics Forecast Survey is in the AS1REPNA database.
| Import/Export Prices (NSA, %) | Feb | Jan | Dec | Feb Y/Y | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imports - All Commodities | 0.2 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 4.6 | -3.3 | -10.2 | -1.1 |
| Petroleum | -0.7 | 6.9 | 5.9 | 73.3 | -19.7 | -46.0 | -5.6 |
| Nonpetroleum | 0.3 | 0.1 | -0.1 | 0.8 | -1.5 | -2.8 | 0.1 |
| Exports - All Commodities | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 3.1 | -3.2 | -6.3 | -0.5 |
| Agricultural | 1.4 | 0.1 | -0.2 | 1.6 | -5.4 | -13.3 | -2.7 |
| Nonagricultural | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 3.3 | -3.0 | -5.5 | -0.3 |
