Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until					 USDL-10-0645
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                           U.S. IMPORT AND EXPORT PRICE INDEXES - APRIL 2010

U.S. import prices advanced 0.9 percent in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, 
following a 0.5 percent increase the previous month. Higher prices for fuel and nonfuel imports contributed 
to the overall advance. Prices for U.S. exports also increased in April, rising 1.2 percent after a 0.7 percent 
advance in March.


Imports 	

All Imports: The price index for U.S. imports increased 0.9 percent in April, continuing the upward trend of 
the past year. The April advance followed a 0.5 percent rise in March and approximately 55 percent of the 
increase was attributable to higher fuel prices. Import prices rose 11.1 percent over the past 12 months, 
similar to the 11.3 to 11.4 percent year-over-year increases recorded in each of the three previous months.

Fuel Imports: Fuel prices also continued to trend up in April, rising 2.3 percent after increasing 1.7 percent 
in March. The price index for import fuel jumped 54.3 percent for the year ended in April, partially reversing 
the 50.8 percent drop recorded for the April 2008-09 period. Both the April increase and the rise over the 
past 12 months were driven by higher petroleum prices which rose 3.3 percent in April and 58.7 percent over 
the past year. A 15.1 percent decline in natural gas prices, which followed a 14.2 percent decrease in March, 
partially offset the higher petroleum prices in April. Despite the downward movement of the past two 
months, natural gas prices advanced 15.0 percent over the past 12 months.

All Imports Excluding Fuel: Nonfuel import prices also contributed to the overall increase in import prices 
in April, rising 0.5 percent. The increase was driven by a 2.6 percent advance in nonfuel industrial supplies 
and materials prices, although higher prices for food and finished goods also contributed to the overall 
advance. The price index for nonfuel prices has not recorded a monthly decline since July 2009 and rose 3.2 
percent for the year ended in April after falling 3.8 percent for the April 2008-09 period.


Table A. Percent changes

Exports 

All Exports: Export prices increased 1.2 percent in April after rising 0.7 percent the previous month. The 
April advance was led by higher nonagricultural prices and was the largest monthly increase since a 1.5 
percent rise in July 2008. The price index for U.S. exports rose 5.7 percent for the April 2009-10 period, the 
largest 12-month increase since a 7.0 percent advance between September 2007 and September 2008. 

Agricultural Exports: Agricultural prices fell 0.7 percent in April following a 1.9 percent increase in March 
and a 3.9 percent decrease in February. In April, lower corn and wheat prices more than offset higher prices 
for fruits and nuts. Despite declining in two of the past three months, agricultural prices advanced 3.2 
percent over the past year, driven by rising prices for cotton, nuts, fruit and meat. 

All Exports Excluding Agriculture: Prices for nonagricultural exports rose 1.4 percent in April, the largest 
one-month jump for the index since monthly publication began in December 1988. Higher prices for 
industrial supplies and materials as well as an overall rise in finished goods prices each contributed to the 
advance. Nonagricultural export prices increased 6.0 percent for the year ended in April, following a 5.4 
percent decline for the April 2008-09 period. 

 


                                        SELECTED APRIL HIGHLIGHTS

Import Prices

Nonfuel Industrial Supplies and Materials: Nonfuel industrial supplies and materials rose 2.6 percent in 
April, the largest one-month increase since a 3.2 percent advance in April 2008. The increase was driven by a 
6.0 percent jump in unfinished metals prices.  Higher prices for iron and steel mill products, steelmaking 
materials, copper, and precious metals all contributed to the increase in metals prices. 

Finished Goods: Finished goods prices were up overall in April, led by a 0.1 percent uptick in the price 
index for capital goods and a 0.2 percent rise in prices for automotive vehicles. The increases were the first 
monthly advances for capital goods prices and automotive vehicle prices since April 2009 and November 
2009, respectively. Consumer goods prices were unchanged in April. 
 
Foods, Feeds, and Beverages: Foods, feeds, and beverages prices increased 1.2 percent in April after a 1.5 
percent advance the previous month. Higher prices for meat, fish, coffee, and fruit, up 4.8 percent, 2.3 
percent, 7.6 percent, and 2.6 percent, respectively, more than offset a 2.7 percent decline in vegetable prices.   

Imports by Locality of Origin: Import prices from China rose 0.2 percent in April, the first monthly 
advance for the index since December. The price indexes for imports from Mexico, the European Union, and 
Canada also advanced in April, rising 1.2 percent, 0.2 percent, and 0.1 percent, respectively.

Transportation Services: Import air passenger fares increased 4.2 percent in April after advancing 5.3 
percent in March. Higher European, Asian, and Latin American/Caribbean fares all contributed to the overall 
increase. The price index for import air freight ticked up 0.1 percent in April. 


Export Prices
 
Nonagricultural Industrial Supplies and Materials: The price index for nonagricultural industrial supplies 
and materials increased 3.4 percent in April. The widespread increase was led by a 5.1 percent advance in 
fuel prices, a 3.1 percent rise in chemicals prices, a 12.7 percent increase in steelmaking material prices, and a 
2.7 percent advance in nonferrous metal prices.
 
Finished Goods: Finished goods prices increased overall in April, led by a second consecutive 0.4 percent 
increase in capital goods prices and a 0.9 percent advance in consumer goods prices. The increase in capital 
goods prices was the largest since April 2009 and was primarily led by a 5.3 percent increase in the price 
index for computer peripherals, accessories, and parts. The rise in consumer goods prices was the largest 
monthly advance for the index since January 1992. In contrast, automotive vehicles prices edged down 0.1 
percent for the month.  

Transportation Services: Export air passenger fares rose 2.4 percent in April following a 1.7 percent 
advance the previous month. Higher Latin American/Caribbean fares and European fares more than offset 
lower Asian fares. Export air freight prices declined 0.2 percent in April after rising 0.5 percent in each of 
the previous two months.
		
Import and Export Price Index data for May 2010 are scheduled for release on Tuesday, June 15, 
2010 at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).

                                          TECHNICAL NOTE


Import and Export Merchandise and Services Price Indexes -- All indexes use a modified Laspeyres 
formula and are not seasonally adjusted.  Price indexes are reweighted annually, with a two-year lag in 
the weights.  Published series use a base year of 2000=100 where possible.  More detailed index series 
and additional information may be obtained at http://www.bls.gov/mxp, or by calling (202) 691-7101.

Merchandise Goods Classification Systems -- The merchandise price indexes are published using 
three classification systems.  Items are classified by end use according to the Bureau of Economic 
Analysis Classification System, by industry according to the North American Industry Classification 
System (NAICS), and by product category according to the Harmonized System (HS).  While 
classification by end use and product category are self-explanatory, some notes are in order for 
classifying items by industry.  In the NAICS imports and exports tables, items are classified by output 
industry, not input industry.  As an example, NAICS import index 326 (plastics and rubber products 
manufacturing) include outputs such as manufactured plastic rather than inputs such as petroleum.  The 
NAICS classification structure also matches the classification system used by the PPI (Producer Price 
Index) to produce the NAICS primary products indexes.

Import Price Indexes -- Products have been classified by the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States Annotated (TSUSA).  Import prices are based on U.S. dollar prices paid by the U.S. importer.  
The prices are generally either "free on board" (f.o.b.) foreign port or "cost, insurance, and freight" 
(c.i.f.) U.S. port transaction prices, depending on the practices of the individual industry.  The index for 
crude petroleum is calculated from data collected by the U.S. Department of Energy.  

Export Price Indexes -- Products have been classified by the Harmonized Schedule B classification 
system of the U.S. Bureau of the Census.  The prices used are generally either "free alongside ship" 
(f.a.s.) factory or "free on board" (f.o.b.) transaction prices, depending on the practices of the individual 
industry.  Prices used in the grain index, excluding rice, are obtained from the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture.

Services Price Indexes -- Starting in September 2008 the Import Air Passenger Fares Indexes represent 
changes in the average revenue per passenger received by foreign carriers from U.S. residents and are 
calculated from data obtained from an airline consulting service.  These data include tickets sold by 
travel agencies and travel websites.  Tickets sold directly by the airlines are excluded, as are frequent 
flyer tickets generally.  Starting in January 2008 the Export Air Passenger Fares Indexes represent 
changes in the average revenue per passenger received by U.S. carriers from foreign residents and are 
calculated from data collected directly from airlines. These data include frequent flyer tickets and those 
sold by consolidators. Taxes and fees are included in the Import Air Passenger Fares Index and excluded 
from the Export Air Passenger Fares Index. The Air Freight Indexes are calculated from data collected 
directly from airlines. These data exclude mail and passenger baggage. The scope of the service being 
priced is the movement of freight from airport to airport only, and does not include any ground 
transportation or port service. The Air Freight Indexes are presented using two definitions: Balance of 
Payments (which represent transactions between U.S. and foreign residents) and International (which 
represent transactions inbound to and outbound from the U.S.). Fact sheets specifying detailed 
information for each services industry are available at http://www.bls.gov/mxp under "MXP 
Publications."

Import Indexes by Locality of Origin -- Prices used in these indexes are a subset of the data collected 
for the Import Price Indexes.  Beginning with January 2002, the indexes are defined by locality of origin 
using a nomenclature based upon the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).  
Nonmanufactured goods are defined as NAICS 11 and 21 and manufactured goods are defined as 
NAICS 31-33. 
 
Revision Policy -- To reflect the availability of late reports and corrections by respondents, monthly data 
may be revised in each of the three months after original publication.  After three months, no further data 
revisions take place.  So, for example, data released in the January release will be subject to revision in 
the releases for February, March, and April.

Uses of the Data -- The primary use of the indexes is to deflate trade statistics, notably the foreign trade 
sector of the National Income and Product Accounts constructed by the Department of Commerce.  
Other published indexes are useful for general market analysis.  For trade in international services, 
Balance of Payments indexes are used for deflating National Income and Product Accounts, while 
International indexes are more appropriate for market analysis.  Merchandise and services indexes also 
can be used to study U.S. competitiveness and to compute price elasticities, and the merchandise import 
indexes by country or region of origin are useful in terms of trade analysis.

E-Mail Subscription -- The U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes news release is available through an 
e-mail subscription service at (http://www.bls.gov/bls/list.htm).
 
Additional Information -- More detailed data are available on the Import/Export Price Indexes home 
page at (http://www.bls.gov/mxp).  Flat Files and the FTP server are available for users requiring access 
to either a large volume of time series data or other related documentation. The FTP site can be accessed 
at ftp://ftp.bls.gov.   For technical assistance in using the BLS Internet site, send e-mail to 
(labstat.helpdesk@bls.gov).  For Import/Export Price Index data requests, send e-mail to 
(mxpinfo@bls.gov). 

Information from this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request.  
Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.