June 14, 2001 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Export prices down four months in a row

The Export Price Index decreased for the fourth straight month, down 0.3 percent in May.

Over-the-month percent change in export price index, May 2000-May 2001 (not seasonally adjusted)
[Chart data—TXT]

The price index for agricultural exports declined 0.1 percent in May, after falling 0.7 percent in April. For the year ended in May, prices for agricultural exports were down 1.4 percent.

Nonagricultural export prices also declined in May, down 0.3 percent after decreasing 0.1 percent in April. For the year ended in May, the index fell 0.6 percent. Over the same time period, overall export prices also fell 0.6 percent.

These data are a product of the BLS International Price program. Learn more in "U.S. Import and Export Price Indexes - May 2001," news release USDL 01-173. Note: export price data are subject to revision in each of the three months after original publication.

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