Prices for U.S. imports increased 1.1% in September after a revised 0.5% rise in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported October 16. Import prices were 8.1% higher than a year earlier, the largest twelve-month increase since July 2022.

Imported fuel became 4.8% more expensive during September, while nonfuel imports rose 0.7%. Capital goods, industrial materials, consumer goods and automotive products contributed to the nonfuel increase.

Export prices advanced 2.2% during the month and 11.6% over twelve months. Agricultural exports rose 2.6% in September, led by higher prices for soybeans, corn and wheat; nonagricultural exports increased 2.1%.

The geographic detail also showed varied movements: import prices from China rose 0.7%, those from the European Union increased 0.3%, and imports from Canada rose 1.3%. These figures describe U.S. trade-price indexes rather than inflation inside the exporting countries.

The report measures prices, not the number of goods traded or the total value of trade. September is the reference month and October 16 the release date; the data should not be presented as a real-time measure of every shipment arriving today.