Full text of U.S. Financial Data : December 14, 2000

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December 14, 2000

USFinancialData
THE WEEK’S HIGHLIGHTS:
■ Following gains of 0.9 percent in September and 0.4 percent in
October, the producer price index for finished goods (PPI) rose
0.1 percent in November, or 1.7 percent at an annual rate. Through
the first 11 months of 2000, the PPI has increased at a 3.9 percent
rate, a percentage point more than the increase posted during 1999
(Dec.-to-Dec.).
■ The index of prices paid by U.S. residents for imported goods rose
0.2 percent in November, after falling 0.5 percent in October.
Measured from a year earlier, import prices are up 4.7 percent.
■ The value of business inventories rose $7.6 billion in October, or
0.6 percent. Business sales, however, fell $2.2 billion, or 0.2 percent.
Since March, when the inventory-to-sales ratio fell to its lowest
level in nearly 50 years, business inventories have increased
4.2 percent, while sales have increased 1.1 percent. Accordingly,
the inventory-to-sales ratio in October rose to its highest level
since May 1999. Sales and inventory data are not adjusted for
price changes.
■ Following virtually no change in October, the value of sales at the
nation’s retailers fell 0.4 percent in November. The slip in sales
during this two-month period reflects, for the most part, a 3.2 percent
drop in the value of auto sales. Excluding autos, sales advanced
0.4 percent in October and 0.2 percent in November. Retail sales,
which are not adjusted for price changes, are up 5.2 percent from a
year earlier, the smallest 12-month increase since September 1998.
All data are seasonally adjusted unless otherwise indicated.
U.S. Financial Data is published weekly by the Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of
St. Louis. For more information on data, please call (314) 444-8590. To be added to the mailing
list, please call (314) 444-8808 or (314) 444-8809.
Information in this publication is also included in the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) electronic
bulletin board at (314) 621-1824 or internet World Wide Web server at www.stls.frb.org/fred.