U.S. Export Prices Continue To Fall

ByJohn S. McClenahen Even as some U.S. manufactured-goods exporters worry that a strong American dollar is pricing them out of foreign markets, government data show overall export prices continuing to decline. The index of export prices fell 0.3% in June, reports the U.S. Labor Dept.'s Bureau of Labor Statistics. It's the index's fifth consecutive decline this year. However, the export price index for capital goods, autos, and consumer goods -- the major finished goods categories -- were unchanged in June. The price index for capital goods had dipped 0.1% in each of the two previous months -- and now stands 0.4% higher than it did in June 2000. In June, 2001 export prices for both automobiles and consumer goods were unchanged for the second consecutive month. Export prices for autos have risen 0.6 percent since June 2000. For consumer goods, export prices have fallen 0.6 percent year-on-year.