The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods rose 0.4 percent in February, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This increase followed a 0.3-percent gain in January and a 0.3-percent decline in December. At the earlier stages of processing, the intermediate goods index advanced 0.7 percent, after moving up 0.4 percent in the previous month, and prices for crude goods fell 1.6 percent, following a 2.0-percent decrease in January.
Among finished goods in February, the indexes for energy goods, consumer foods, and consumer goods other than foods and energy rose 1.4, 0.8, and 0.2 percent, respectively. By contrast, capital equipment prices fell 0.2 percent. Excluding prices for foods and energy, the finished goods index edged up 0.1 percent in February, compared with a 0.8-percent increase in January.
Before seasonal adjustment, the Producer Price Index for Finished Goods advanced 0.5 percent in February to 152.2 (December 1982=100). From February 2004 to February 2005, prices for finished goods rose 4.7 percent. Over the same period, the index for finished energy goods increased 11.8 percent, prices for finished goods other than foods and energy moved up 2.8 percent, and the finished consumer foods index climbed 4.9 percent. For the 12 months ended February 2005, prices for intermediate goods increased 8.4 percent, and the crude goods index rose 8.1 percent.
Finished goods
The finished energy goods index rose 1.4 percent in February, after falling 1.0 percent in the preceding month. Leading this upturn, gasoline prices increased 5.2 percent, following a 4.2-percent decline in January. The liquefied petroleum gas index also turned up, after decreasing in the prior month, while prices for residential natural gas fell less in February than they did in the previous month. Alternatively, the residential electric power index moved down 0.3 percent in February, compared with a 1.2-percent gain a month earlier. Home heating oil prices rose less than they did in January.The index for finished consumer foods advanced 0.8 percent in February, following a 0.2-percent decline in the previous month. Prices for fresh and dry vegetables jumped 18.7 percent, after dropping 12.0 percent in January. The indexes for eggs for fresh use, finfish and shellfish, soft drinks, and processed young chickens also turned up in February, following decreases a month earlier. Prices for beef and veal and for bakery products rose more than they did in the preceding month. By contrast, the dairy products index fell 2.5 percent in February, after advancing 0.9 percent in the prior month. Prices for roasted coffee and processed turkeys also turned down, following gains in January, while the index for confectionery end products showed no change in February, after rising in the previous month. The indexes for pork and fresh fruits and melons posted greater declines in February that they did a month earlier.
The rate of increase in the index for finished consumer goods excluding foods and energy slowed from 0.9 percent in January to 0.2 percent in February. Prices for cigarettes moved up 0.6 percent in February, following a 3.4-percent gain in the preceding month. The indexes for alcoholic beverages, newspaper circulation, and household furniture also rose less in February than they did in January. Prices for light motor trucks; passenger cars; pharmaceutical preparations; women's, girls', and infants' apparel; and sporting and athletic goods turned down in February. Conversely, the index for cosmetics and other toilet preparations rose 1.1 percent, after falling 0.2 percent in January. Prices for pet food and floor coverings also increased, following decreases in January, while the household appliance index rose more than it did in the prior month.
Subsequent to a 0.6-percent gain in January, the index for capital equipment decreased 0.2 percent in February. The index for light motor trucks fell 2.8 percent, after posting a 0.9-percent rise in January. Prices for passenger cars and for communication and related equipment also turned down in February. The indexes for heavy motor trucks, civilian aircraft, construction machinery and equipment, and commercial furniture advanced less than they did in the prior month. By contrast, prices for electronic computers turned up 0.4 percent in February, following a 6.1- percent decrease in the preceding month. The indexes for office and store machines and equipment and for welding machines and equipment also went up, after declining a month earlier. Prices for pumps, compressors, and equipment increased at a faster pace than they did in January, and the metal forming machine tools index rose in February, following no change in the previous month.
