BLS reports: Import prices rise 0.2% in Feb.; Productivity rises 1.3% in 4th qtr 2016 (annual rate)

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Import prices rise 0.2% in February despite a drop in fuel prices; export prices up 0.3%

Economic News Release USDL-17-0299

U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes

Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until 8:30 a.m. (EST) Thursday, March 9, 2017

Technical information: [phone] * [e-mail] * www.bls.gov/mxp
Media contact: [phone] * [e-mail]


U.S. IMPORT AND EXPORT PRICE INDEXES - FEBRUARY 2017

Prices for U.S. imports advanced 0.2 percent in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, led by higher nonfuel import prices which more than offset lower fuel prices. The February rise in import prices followed a 0.6-percent increase the previous month. U.S. export prices rose 0.3 percent in February, after advancing 0.2 percent in January.

Imports

All Imports: Import prices rose for the third consecutive month in February, increasing 0.2 percent, after a 0.6-percent advance in January and a 0.4-percent rise in December. The increase in February was driven by rising nonfuel prices, unlike the previous 2 months when higher fuel prices led the advances. The price index for imports also rose over the past year, increasing 4.6 percent. That rise was the largest 12-month advance in import prices since a 5.1-percent increase in February 2012.
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Import and Export Price Index data for March 2017 are scheduled for release on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).

Productivity rises 1.3% in 4th quarter 2016 (annual rate); unit labor costs rise 1.7%

Economic News Release USDL 17-0298

Productivity and Costs, Fourth Quarter and Annual Averages 2016, Revised

Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until 8:30 a.m. (EST) Wednesday, March 8, 2017

Technical information: [phone] [e-mail] www.bls.gov/lpc
Media contact: [phone] [e-mail]

PRODUCTIVITY AND COSTS
Fourth Quarter and Annual Averages 2016, Revised

Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased at a 1.3-percent annual rate during the fourth quarter of 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, as output increased 2.4 percent and hours worked increased 1.0 percent. (All quarterly percent changes in this release are seasonally adjusted annual rates.) From the fourth quarter of 2015 to the fourth quarter of 2016, productivity increased 1.0 percent, reflecting increases in output and hours worked of 2.2 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively. (See table A1.) Annual average productivity increased 0.2 percent from 2015 to 2016. (See table C1.)

Labor productivity, or output per hour, is calculated by dividing an index of real output by an index of hours worked of all persons, including employees, proprietors, and unpaid family workers. Measures released today were based on more recent source data than were available for the preliminary report.

Unit labor costs in the nonfarm business sector increased 1.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, reflecting a 3.0-percent increase in hourly compensation and a 1.3-percent increase in productivity. Unit labor costs increased 2.0 percent over the last four quarters. (See tables A1 and 2.)
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Quarterly and annual data for all sectors from 2014 to 2016 appear in tables 1-6. Full historical measures can be found on the Productivity and Costs home page, www.bls.gov/lpc/#data.
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The preliminary Productivity and Costs news release for first-quarter 2017 is scheduled to be released on Thursday, May 4, 2017 at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).

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So far, the BLS is putting out propaganda-free reports. How long that will last, I do not know. There is now an altBLS Twitter feed:

@alt_bls

.@realDonaldTrump, we're the statisticians and economists... you're a real estate developer. Stick to golf. #Resistance #Resist