U.S. Import Prices Edged Up and Export Prices Rebounded in June
by:Sandy Batten
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
- Import prices edged up in June from May but fell from a year ago.
- Higher prices for nonfuel imports more than offset lower prices for fuel imports in June.
- Export prices jumped more than expected, nearly reversing May’s decline.
- Prices rose for both agricultural and nonagricultural exports.
Import prices edged up 0.1% m/m (-0.2% y/y) in June after falling a revised 0.4% m/m (previously unchanged) in May, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A 0.2% m/m increase had been expected by the Action Economics Forecast Survey. Export prices rebounded, rising 0.5% m/m (2.8% y/y) in June, nearly reversing an upwardly revised 0.6% m/m decline in May (previously -0.9% m/m). The Action Economic Forecast Survey had looked for a 0.1% monthly gain.
For imports, prices for nonfuel imports ticked up 0.1% m/m in June, after being unchanged in May. Higher prices for nonfuel industrial supplies and materials (0.7% m/m) and consumer goods excluding autos (0.4% m/m) more than offset lower prices for foods, feeds and beverages (-0.8% m/m) and automotive vehicles (-0.1% m/m). Nonfuel import prices increased 1.2% for the year ended June 2025 and have not declined on an over-the-year basis since a 0.6% decrease in February 2024. Higher prices from a year ago for nonfuel industrial supplies and materials (4.3% y/y); foods, feeds, and beverages (4.5% y/y); capital goods (1.0% y/y); and automotive vehicles (0.9% y/y) more than offset lower prices for consumer goods ex autos (-0.6% y/y).
For exports, higher prices for both nonagricultural (0.5% m/m) and agricultural exports (0.8% m/m) drove the June rebound. The 0.8% monthly gain in agricultural export prices was the largest monthly gain since October 2024. Higher prices for meat and soybeans more than offset lower prices for fruit. The rebound in nonagricultural export prices in June after a 0.7% monthly decline in May reflected higher prices for nonagricultural industrial supplies and materials (0.9% m/m), consumer goods ex autos (0.8% m/m), and automotive vehicles (0.1% m/m). In contrast, prices of exported capital goods edged down 0.1% m/m, the first monthly decline since August 2024. Export prices increased 2.8% from June 2024 to June 2025, the largest y/y rise since the index advanced 2.8% for the year ended January 2025.
These import and export price series are not seasonally adjusted; they can be found in Haver’s USECON database. Detailed figures are available in the USINT database. The expectations figure from the Action Economics Forecast Survey is in the AS1REPNA database.
Sandy Batten
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Sandy Batten has more than 30 years of experience analyzing industrial economies and financial markets and a wide range of experience across the financial services sector, government, and academia. Before joining Haver Analytics, Sandy was a Vice President and Senior Economist at Citibank; Senior Credit Market Analyst at CDC Investment Management, Managing Director at Bear Stearns, and Executive Director at JPMorgan. In 2008, Sandy was named the most accurate US forecaster by the National Association for Business Economics. He is a member of the New York Forecasters Club, NABE, and the American Economic Association. Prior to his time in the financial services sector, Sandy was a Research Officer at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Senior Staff Economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy at the US Treasury, and Economist at the International Monetary Fund. Sandy has taught economics at St. Louis University, Denison University, and Muskingun College. He has published numerous peer-reviewed articles in a wide range of academic publications. He has a B.A. in economics from the University of Richmond and a M.A. and Ph.D. in economics from The Ohio State University.
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