The U.S. import price index fell 0.2% in February, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday.
Thomson Reuters had predicted a 0.8% decrease for the imports index. The 0.2% decrease in the index followed a revised 1.2% decrease in import prices in January, originally reported as a 1.1% decrease.
Excluding petroleum, the import price index fell 0.6% in the month, after 0.8% slip in January. Excluding fuels, imports were down 0.4% in the month.
Petroleum import prices jumped 3.9% in February after a revised 4.2% drop in January, originally reported as a 2.4% decrease, Labor said. In the past year, petroleum import prices have slid 52.4%, compared to a 12.8% slide in the overall import price index and a 1.9% drop in non-petroleum imports.
Meanwhile, export prices dipped 0.1%, after an unrevised 0.5% rise in January. Year-over-year export prices had fallen 4.5%.
