US import prices unchanged in January

The US Department of Labor said today that the import price index in the United States did not witness any change during the month of January after imports increased by 0.2% in December, and analysts had expected US imports to decline by 0.2% in January.

On an annual basis, US imports increased in the twelve months to January by 0.3% after increasing by 0.5% in December, and the prices of primary imports that exclude fuel and food increased by 0.2% in January and by 0.8% on an annual basis.

The prices of imported fuel and oils decreased by 2.2% in January after rising by 1.7% in December, as oil prices decreased by 1.7% in January after rising by 1.0% in December while the prices of imported foodstuffs increased by 0.5% in January.