Import Price Index Up 1.7%; Export Prices Grow 1.2%

The U.S. import price index was up 1.7% in January, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday.

IFR Markets had predicted a 0.5% increase for the imports index, which followed a downwardly revised 0.2% decrease in import prices in December.

Excluding petroleum, the import price index rose 0.6% in the month after a 0.3% rise in December.

Petroleum import prices surged 5.5% in January after a 1.9% decline in December, Labor said. In the past year, petroleum import prices have spiked 66.9%.

Meanwhile, export prices rose 1.2%, after a 0.4% increase in December.

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