U.S. Import Prices Drop 0.3% In April Despite Costlier Oil

The prices the U.S. paid for imported goods fell 0.3% in April, as the lower cost of goods such as food and industrial supplies offset a rise in petroleum. Excluding fuel, import prices fell by 0.4% last month, the Labor Department said Wednesday. The price of U.S.-made goods exported to other nations dropped 0.7% in April. For the past 12 months import prices have declined by 10.7%, mostly because of a steep drop in oil in the second half of 2014. Import prices are down a much smaller 2.3% excluding fuel during the same span. Foreign goods are cheaper in part because of the stronger value of the dollar that makes imports less costly.