January 14, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)
Producer prices edged down
0.1 percent in 1998
The producer price index (PPI) for finished
goods decreased 0.1 percent from December 1997 to December 1998, after falling 1.2 percent
in 1997. Prices for finished energy goods fell 12.1 percent and prices for finished
consumer foods fell 0.1 percent. The "core" PPI—finished goods less food
and energy—rose by 2.4 percent, with much of the increase attributable to rising
cigarette prices.
![Percent change in select Producer Price Index groupings, 1997 and 198](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20120925102313im_/http://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/images/1999/jan/wk2/art04.gif)
[Chart data—TXT]
The PPI for intermediate materials, supplies, and components fell 3.1
percent in 1998, after declining by 0.8 percent in 1997. Prices for intermediate energy
goods fell 11.9 percent during the year, while the index for intermediate foods and feeds
decreased by 7.5 percent. Prices for intermediate materials less foods and energy dropped
1.5 percent in 1998.
The PPI for crude materials declined 17.6 percent in 1998, after falling 11.3 percent
in 1997. Crude energy prices dropped 26.5 percent, while prices for crude foodstuffs and
feedstuffs were down 10.8 percent. The index for crude nonfood materials less energy
declined 16.0 percent in 1998.
These data are produced by the BLS Producer
Price Index program. More information can be obtained in news release
USDL 99-10, Producer Price Indexes,
December 1998. Annual comparisons are based on changes in indexes from
December 1997 to December 1998. Data for December 1998 are preliminary and are
subject to revision four months following release. For updated information, see a subsequent edition of The Editor's Desk, "No change in producer prices
in 1998" (08/19/1999).
Of interest
Spotlight on Statistics: National Hispanic Heritage Month
In this Spotlight, we take a look at the Hispanic labor force—including labor force participation, employment and unemployment, educational attainment, geographic location, country of birth, earnings, consumer expenditures, time use, workplace injuries, and employment projections.
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