Each day the Research staff takes a look at recently released economic indicators, addressing what these indicators mean for REALTORS® and their clients. Today’s update highlights imports and exports.

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    The Bureau of Labor Statistics released import and export prices today.  Prices for imports rose for the 10th consecutive month with a strong 2.2% gain after last month’s 2.6% gain.  While down from a month ago, price growth remains robust and resulted in a strong 11.1% gain relative to April of 2010.
  • The growth of import prices was led by a 6.7% gain in fuel prices.  Non-fuel imports remain elevated at 0.6% likely reflecting some pass-through of high gas prices.
  • Rising gas prices hurt consumers and increase costs for REALTORS®.  The continuation of this trend will weigh on consumer and business confidence. Weak confidence might cause businesses to put off plans to hire a pattern that could hamper household formation and future home sales.