With higher fuel prices offset by declining non-fuel prices, the Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing that U.S. import prices unexpectedly came in flat in August.
The report said import prices were unchanged in August after ticking up by 0.1 percent in July. Economists had been expecting import prices to rise by about 0.5 percent.
Prices for fuel imports showed a relatively modest 0.5 percent increase in August after surging up by 1.8 percent in the previous month.
The Labor Department said a 0.8 percent increase in petroleum prices was partly offset by a 9.0 percent drop in natural gas prices.
Meanwhile, the report said prices for non-fuel imports fell for the sixth consecutive month, dipping by 0.2 percent in August after sliding by 0.4 percent in July.
Falling prices for non-fuel industrial supplies and materials and finished goods drove the August drop in non-fuel import prices.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said export prices fell by 0.5 percent in August following a 0.1 percent decrease in the previous month. Export prices had been expected to edge up by 0.1 percent.
The continued decrease in export prices in August was partly due to a 4.3 percent drop in prices for agricultural exports.
A 15.9 percent decrease in soybean prices and a 14.5 percent drop in corn prices drove the August decline in agricultural prices.
Prices for non-agricultural exports edged down by 0.1 percent in August, as falling finished goods prices offset an increase in prices for non-agricultural industrial supplies and materials.
Compared to the same month a year ago, import prices were down by 0.4 percent in August. Export prices fell at an annual rate of 1.1 percent.
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