U.S. import prices jump 0.5% in September on fuel costs
Getty ImagesTanker trucks load up with fuel at a terminal attached to a Citgo oil refinery March 8, 2005 in Lemont, Illinois.
The numbers: The cost of goods imported into the U.S. rose in September for the first time in four months. The import price index climbed 0.5% last month, driven up by higher cost of imported fuel, the government said Friday.
This was above the Wall Street expectations of a 0.2% increase, according to Econoday. Import prices were down a revised 0.4% in August.
If fuel is excluded, import prices rose were flat.
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×The costs of imports over the past 12 months slowed to 3.5% in September from 3.8% in the prior month. This is down from a peak of 4.8% in July.
Annual import price inflation is now down from a peak of 4.8% in July What happened: Petroleum-import prices grew 4.1% in September. Prices for foods, feeds, and beverages were among those declining, however.
Big picture: Going forward, higher oil prices CLX8, +0.76% are expected to continue to push import price inflation higher, while a stronger dollar DXY, +0.21% offers some offset.
What are they saying?: "There is still no sign that tariffs imposed by the U.S. on Chinese goods are putting significant upward pressure on domestic prices," said Blerina Uruci, economist at Barclays.
Market reaction: U.S. stock benchmarks rebound Friday after sharp declines earlier in the week. On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, +1.15% jumped 350 points in early trading.