BLS DAILY REPORT, MONDAY, AUGUST 14, 2000
__The cost of finished energy reversed course in July, falling a seasonally
adjusted 0.7 percent and holding the producer price index steady, BLS
reported. ... The 0.7 percent drop in finished energy prices followed a 5.1
percent gain in June. Leading the decline, a 9.1 percent downturn in
gasoline prices in July followed an 11.8 percent advance in the previous
month. Prices for liquefied petroleum gas rose less than in June. The
index for home heating oil turned down, after rising in the prior month. By
contrast, prices for residential electric power turned up 2.0 percent in
July, following a 0.7 percent decline in June. The index for residential
natural gas rose at a faster rate than a month ago. In fact, the 6.2
percent jump in natural gas prices in July is the largest on record,
according to BLS economist Joseph Kowal. ... Excluding often volatile
prices for energy and food, the so-called core rate for PPI finished goods
edged up 0.1 percent in July, after declining 0.1 percent in June. ...
(Daniel J. Roy in Daily Labor Report, D-1).
__Americans returned to the nation's retailers in droves last month, sending
consumer demand spiraling higher and raising questions about whether the
slowing economy will pick up speed again in the months ahead. Retail sales
rose a larger-than expected 0.7 percent in July, fueled by a surge in demand
for big-ticket durable goods such as cars and furniture, the Commerce
Department said. ... In a second report, the Labor Department said
wholesale prices stayed flat in July and showed few signs of increasing
again in the immediate future. ... (Yochi J. Dreasen in Wall Street
Journal, page A2).
__Retail sales rose in July at the fastest pace in five months, while prices
paid to manufacturers, farmers, and other producers were little changed.
Sales were led by gains at auto dealers, department stores, and building
supply outlets. ... (Bloomberg News in Wall Street Journal, Aug. 12, page
B4).
The CPI is forecast to have risen 0.2 percent in July; the same is forecast
for the core CPI (Wall Street Journal, page A2).
A serious economic chill is blowing toward consumers this coming winter:
Higher natural-gas prices could boost heating bills more than 50 percent
this winter because of higher natural-gas prices, the DOE said, the result
of a precarious supply situation, raging consumption, and several years of
lackluster North American production. ... Meanwhile, Southern California's
electricity woes are worrying corporations nationwide, causing many to
question the assumption that deregulation of utilities would lead to lower
prices. ... (Wall Street Journal, page A2).
DUE OUT TOMORROW: Mass Layoffs in June 2000
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