U.S. July import prices rise 1.5 percent

Aug 10, 2007 - U.S. import prices rose for the sixth straight month, climbing 1.5 percent in July on higher petroleum costs, a government report on Friday showed.

Excluding a 7 percent increase in the cost of petroleum imports, prices were up 0.2 percent after a 0.1 percent rise in June, the Labor Department said.

July's rise in import prices exceeded the 1 percent increase Wall Street economists were expecting. The Labor Department revised down the June price figure to 0.9 percent from a first-reported 1.0 percent increase.

The report also showed that export prices rose 0.2 percent in July after rising 0.3 percent in June. That was somewhat lower than the 0.3 percent rise economists had forecast.

Foods, feeds, and beverage prices jumped 1.6 percent in July after rising 0.2 percent in June. Over the past year, prices rose 9.8 percent, the largest yearly increase since a 10.2 percent gain in May 1995.

The rise in nonpetroleum import prices was driven by higher prices for finished goods, the department said.

Automotive prices rose 0.1 percent in July while consumer goods, excluding autos also rose 0.1 percent.