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US June import prices up 2.6%, up 20.5% over past year
WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - Soaring prices for food and oil pushed overall US import prices to their largest annual gain on record, the Labor Department said today. Overall import prices rose 2.6% in June, sharply higher than the 1.8% gain economists polled by Thomson Reuters IFR Markets were expecting. Over the past 12 months, overall import prices have risen 20.5%, the largest 12 month increase since this data was first published in September 1982. Oil import prices rose 7.4% in June and were up 78.6% for the year, the largest annual increase since February 2003. Excluding oil, import costs rose 0.9% in June and 7.3% in the past year, the largest annual gain since June 1988. Food import prices rose 1.9% in June and 15.8% over the year, the largest annual rise since this data was first published in September 1977. Industrial supplies and materials also saw prices hikes, by 5.8% in June and 50.1% over the year, the largest yearly gain since this data was first reported in December 1984. Capital goods prices declined in the month, by 0.1%, marking the first decline since January. Import prices rose for products from all across the world. Even the normally lower-cost imports from China were showing signs of inflation with a 0.6% increase for June. That brought the annual increase of Chinese imports to 4.8%. US export prices rose 1.0% in June and 8.6% over the year, the largest yearly increase since 1988. Export prices for non-agricultural goods rose 0.9% for the month and were up 6.4% for the year, the largest increase on records dating to 1985. [email][email protected][/email] tlm/wash/ajb COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.