-->The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor
reported today that the seasonally adjusted Producer Price Index for
Finished Goods declined 0.3 percent in November. This decrease followed
five consecutive increases -- including a 0.8-percent rise in October and a
0.3-percent increase in September. At the earlier stages of processing,
prices received by manufacturers of intermediate goods edged down 0.2
percent in November, compared with a 0.4-percent gain in October. The
index for crude goods increased 0.2 percent, after climbing 2.6 percent in
the preceding month....

From November 2002 to November 2003, finished goods prices advanced 3.4 percent. Over the same period, the index for finished consumer foods climbed 7.9 percent, prices for finished energy goods went up 9.9 percent, and the index for finished goods other than foods and energy rose 0.5 percent. Prices received by intermediate goods producers increased 3.3 percent, while the crude goods index jumped 18.3 percent for the 12-month period ended in November 2003.