FIBER: Industrial Commodity Prices Rise Modestly in Latest Four Weeks
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
- Rubber & metals prices increase.
- Textile price rise led by cotton.
- Energy price decline paced by crude oil.
The Industrial Materials Price Index from the Foundation for International Business and Economic Research (FIBER) increased 0.7% (1.1% y/y) during the four weeks ended September 20, 2024, after falling 0.6% during the earlier four weeks.
Prices in the Miscellaneous group led the increase with a 2.3% gain during the last four weeks and were up 4.8% y/y. The cost of natural rubber rose 15.2% in four weeks but jumped 81.7% y/y. Plywood prices fell 2.3% in four weeks (+4.3% y/y).
Prices in the Metals group increased 1.1% (7.9% y/y) over the most recent four weeks. Zinc prices gained 3.9% (15.1% y/y) in four weeks and aluminum prices rose 3.7% (14.7% y/y). Copper scrap prices rose 1.8% in four weeks (11.7% y/y). To the downside, tin prices fell 1.7% (24.2% y/y) in four weeks. Also, lead prices eased 0.5% in four weeks (-10.3% y/y) and steel scrap prices slipped 0.4% (-2.3% y/y) over four weeks.
Textile group prices rose 0.9% (-1.7% y/y) in the latest four weeks. Cotton prices rose 5.4% (-20.1% y/y) in four weeks. The cost of burlap posted a 0.6% rise (18.6% y/y) during the last four weeks.
Offsetting these increases, prices in the Crude Oil & Benzene group decreased 4.0% (-12.6% y/y) in the last four weeks. The cost of West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 4.4% in four weeks to $70.56 per barrel and was 22.2% lower y/y. The cost of the petro-chemical benzene, used for making plastics & synthetic fibers, fell 11.9% (-19.1% y/y) in the last four weeks. Excluding crude oil, the industrial commodity price index rose 1.0% (2.6% y/y) in the latest four-week period.
The Foundation for International Business and Economic Research (FIBER) develops economic measurement techniques as applied to business cycles and inflation in the U.S. and other market economies. The commodity price data can be found in Haver's DAILY, WEEKLY, USECON and CMDTY databases.
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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