U.S. import prices remained flat in December, while export prices rose slightly, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday.
Export prices rose 0.4 percent in December due, in part, to a 4.5 percent increase in soybean prices. The Bureau of Labor Statistics did note in its release that wheat and vegetable export prices were down slightly in December.
Joel Naroff, president and founder of Holland, Penn.-based Naroff Economic Advisors Inc., expressed cautious optimism about the export numbers. “Overall, if you’re looking at the non-food, non-fuel prices, the export prices have stabilized, ” he said.
Naroff added, “The agricultural numbers are crazy these days.”
Naroff pointed out that dramatic fluctuation in agriculture exports is common, and the 0.4 percent hike in agricultural exports follows several months of uncertainty. Agricultural exports slid 1.3 percent in October and 0.2 percent in November.
December’s higher overall export prices are still down 1.0 percent decrease from December 2012, in part because agriculture prices have experienced a 6.3 percent drop since then.
