Jeffrey Bartash of the MarketWatch reports that import prices posted the biggest increase in six months and added to U.S. inflation. Bartash writes:
The numbers: The cost of imported goods snapped back in October and added a bit more upward pressure to U.S. inflation, largely because of higher fuel costs.
The import-price index rose 0.3% last month.
Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had forecast a 0.1% decline in October following an even bigger decline in September.
If energy is excluded, import prices moved up 0.2% last month, the government said.
Key details: Fuel prices jumped 1.5% in October to partly reverse a 7.5% decline in the prior month.
With oil prices falling again, however, the cost of imports is unlikely to be a significant contributor to U.S. inflation in the next few months. Import prices have risen a scant 0.8% in the past year.
Read more here.
