EM’s EPI Ends 2015 with a Thud

Electrical Marketing’s Electrical Price Index (EPI)   slid 0.1% from Nov. 2015 and was down -1.2% year-over-year (YOY) from Dec. 2015. Telephone supplies (-1.2%) and Nonmetallic Conduit (-1.1%) were down the most for the month, while Power Wire & Cable (-9.4%), Building Wire & Cable (-3.0%) and Telephone (-7.3%) were down the most YOY. Ballasts were up a surprising 12.3% YOY.

Note: All EPI series represent Global Insight 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 1997 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; Global Insight