WASHINGTON — Import prices edged higher in September increasing 0.1% as rising prices for goods offset a decline in fuel prices, the Labor Department reported yesterday.
Non-fuel import prices for goods such as industrial materials, finished goods and food, rose 0.6%, the largest increase since July 2008. Fuel import prices declined 1.8% in September, the second decrease in three months.
Economists predicted import prices would rise 0.2% in September, according to the median estimate provided by Thomson Reuters.
Import prices for August were revised lower to a 1.6% increase from the initially reported 2.0% rise.
Export prices fell 0.3%, led by a 2.8% drop in agricultural prices. Export prices increased 0.7% in August.
