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Import prices from China decrease 1.9 percent over the year ending in April 2016

May 16, 2016

Import prices from China edged down 0.1 percent in April, after consecutive 0.2-percent decreases in March and February. Prices for imports from China have not recorded a monthly increase since the index ticked up 0.1 percent in December 2014. From April 2015 to April 2016, the index fell 1.9 percent, the largest 12-month decrease since the index fell 2.4 percent for the year ended in November 2009.

Percent change in U.S. import prices by locality of origin, April 2016
Locality of origin 12-month percent change 1-month percent change

Canada

-10.8% 1.4%

European Union (1)

-1.6 0.3

France

0.5 0.1

Germany

-2.7 0.0

United Kingdom

-2.5 0.1

Latin America (2)

-9.2 0.6

Mexico

-5.4 0.2

Pacific Rim (3)

-2.2 -0.1

China

-1.9 -0.1

Japan

-1.3 0.0

Asian NICs (4)

-2.5 -0.1

ASEAN (5)

-2.2 0.5

Asia Near East (6)

-28.3 3.7

Other Countries (7)

-6.4 0.3
Footnotes:

(1) European Union countries.

(2) Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.

(3) China, Japan, Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, Macao, Malaysia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Philippines and the Asian Newly Industrialized Countries.

(4) Asian Newly Industrialized Countries - Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.

(5) Association of Southeast Asian Nations - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

(6) Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

(7) Eastern Europe, Latin America, OPEC countries, and other countries in Asia, Africa and the Western Hemisphere.

In contrast to the lower prices for imports from China, the price indexes for imports from Canada, the European Union, and Mexico all rose in April, led by higher prices for fuel and metals. Prices for imports from Canada increased 1.4 percent, from the European Union 0.3 percent, and from Mexico 0.2 percent. Prices for imports from Japan recorded no change for the second consecutive month in April.

These data are from the International Price program. Import and export prices are subject to revision. The localities are not mutually exclusive. To learn more, see “U.S. Import and Export Prices — April 2016” (HTML) (PDF). See more charts on import and export price trends in Charts related to the latest “U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes” news release.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Import prices from China decrease 1.9 percent over the year ending in April 2016 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2016/import-prices-from-china-decrease-1-point-9-percent-over-the-year-ending-in-april-2016.htm (visited March 28, 2024).

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