US Import Prices Rise More than Expected

Prices of imports into the United States rose by 1.1% from the previous month, the most in four months, well above market expectations of a 0.8% increase to extend the 0.7% jump in the earlier month. Higher prices for purchases of oversees goods were broad-based, with non-fuel imports rising by 0.7% following the revised 0.6% increase in the prior month. The increase was net of tariffs recently imposed by the presidential administration, indicating that companies are not reducing prices to accommodate for higher duties. In turn, fuel imports soared by 4.8%, also the sharpest rise in four months, as the tighter blockade of tankers by Iran and the US leaving the Persian Gulf drove oil and product prices to surge globally. From the previous year, import prices rose 8.1%.

Prices of imports into the United States jumped by 0.7% from the previous month in August of 2026, erasing the 0.3% declines in the two prior months, and firmly above expectations of a softer 0.4% increase. Despite the rise in wholesale crude oil and fuel prices across the globe due to the escalation in the war in Iran, the increase in import prices was solely concentrated on nonfuel imports, which rose 0.8%. In turn, fuel import prices eased by 0.1%, the softest of three straight declines. Notably, the gauge excludes increasing tariffs that have recently been passed by the presidential administration on a series of goods. Import prices rose by 7.0% on an annual basis.

US import prices fell by 0.4% month-over-month in July 2026, following a revised 0.3% decrease in June and contrasting with market forecasts of a 0.1% increase. This marked the largest monthly decline since May 2025. Import fuel prices fell 7.2%, their biggest decline since September 2024, as a 7.5% drop in petroleum and petroleum product prices more than offset a 5.3% increase in natural gas prices. Meanwhile, nonfuel import prices rose 0.4%, driven by higher prices for capital goods, foods, feeds and beverages, and automotive vehicles, parts and engines. These increases more than offset declines in nonfuel industrial supplies and materials. The gauge excludes duties, such as tariffs imposed by the US administration, as well as transportation costs. On a yearly basis, US import prices rose by 5.9%.