November 15, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Producer prices in October

The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods decreased 0.1 percent in October, seasonally adjusted. This decline followed a 1.1-percent advance in September and a 0.5-percent gain in August. The index for finished goods other than foods and energy rose 0.3 percent in October, after advancing 0.8 percent in the prior month.

[Chart data—TXT]

Prices received by producers of intermediate goods rose 0.3 percent, the same as in September. The crude goods index turned down 1.6 percent, after posting a 5.1-percent increase in the previous month.

From October 1998 to October 1999, the finished goods index advanced 2.7 percent (unadjusted). Over the past 12 months, the index for finished goods other than foods and energy moved up 1.9 percent. Prices received by producers of intermediate goods increased 2.4 percent for the 12 months ended in October 1999, and the index for crude materials rose 11.6 percent during the same period.

These data are a product of the BLS Producer Price Index program. Find out more in Producer Price Indexes, October 1999, news release USDL 99-319. All producer price indexes are routinely subject to revision once, 4 months after original publication, to reflect the availability of late reports and corrections by respondents.