U.S. Import Prices Fall 0.7% in February

The prices U.S. businesses paid for imported goods fell 0.7% in February, posting the largest drop since June 1996, according to Labor Department figures. Petroleum import prices fell 7.2% last month after rising a revised 1.4% in January, the government said. That marks the biggest decline since September 1994. Excluding petroleum, import prices advanced 0.1% in February. In January, overall import prices decreased 0.2%, initially reported as a decline of 0.3%. The report is in line with other government statistics that suggest inflation remains in check.