EPI slides 0.6% in October

Nov. 22, 2002
Electrical Marketing's Electrical Price Index (EPI) dropped 0.6 percent for October. The index posted price gains in eight categories and decreases in

Electrical Marketing's Electrical Price Index (EPI) dropped 0.6 percent for October. The index posted price gains in eight categories and decreases in eleven; nine product categories held steady this time.

Conduit fittings and nonmetallic conduit posted the biggest declines (-3.3 percent) followed by building wire (-1.8 percent). Panelboard and switches posted the biggest gain (+1.9 percent).

Note: All EPI series represent DRI/WEFA aggregates of Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) producer price indices (PPIs). The revised data partly reflect redefinitions of specific PPIs by the BLS, but mostly reflect the rebenchmarking of all EPI price series to a 1987 base year. The four following EPI series have been affected by BLS redefinitions: boxes, conduit (fittings), nonmetallic conduit, and generators. Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; DRI McGraw-Hill Economics.