After many months of little or no growth, EM’s Price Index (EPI), showed a year-over-year increase in February of 1%. The biggest increases came in building wire & cable which was up 4% over January and 2.8% over Feb. 2013, and the wiring devices & connector category, which was up 1.3% and 3.3% over the same time. Generators (-1%) and air conditioners (-1.3%) were down.
Note: All EPI series represent Global Insight aggregates of Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) producer price indices (PPIs). The revised data partly reflect redefinitions of specific PPIs by the BLS, but mostly reflect the rebenchmarking of all EPI price series to a 1997 base year. The four following EPI series have been affected by BLS redefinitions: boxes, conduit (fittings), nonmetallic conduit, and generators. Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Global Insight