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http://www.bls.gov/ppi              APRIL 11, 2003
                                     
                   Producer Price Indexes -- March 2003

     The Producer Price Index for Finished Goods advanced 1.5 percent in
March, seasonally adjusted, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S.
Department of Labor reported today.  This increase followed a 1.0-percent
gain in February and a 1.6-percent rise in January.  At the earlier stages
of processing, prices for intermediate goods moved up 2.0 percent, after
increasing 2.1 percent in the prior month.  The crude goods index jumped
13.3 percent, following a 4.8-percent gain in February.  (See table A.)

Table A.  Monthly and annual percent changes in selected stage-of-processing price
indexes, seasonally adjusted
 ______________________________________________________________________________________
|        |                                                         |         |         |
|        |                   Finished goods                        |         |         |
|        |                                                         |         |         |
|        |---------------------------------------------------------|         |         |
|        |          |          |          |         |  Change in   |         |         |
|        |          |          |          | Except  |finished goods| Inter-  |         |
|        |          |          |          |foods and|from 12 months| mediate |  Crude  |
| Month  |  Total   |  Foods   |  Energy  | energy  |  ago(unadj.) | goods   |  goods  |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
 2002                                                   
   Mar.       0.8        0.6        4.6       -0.1        -1.6         0.7       5.2
   Apr.       -.1       -2.9        3.1         .1        -2.1          .9       4.3
   May        -.4        -.3       -2.3          0        -2.9         -.3        .7
   June        .1         .2         .1         .1        -2.3          .2      -3.8
   July         0        -.1        1.1        -.3        -1.2          .2        .8
   Aug.         0        -.4        1.4        -.1        -1.5          .4       1.8
   Sept.       .3        -.4        1.2         .3        -1.8          .5       2.2
   Oct.        .8         .4        3.4         .3          .7          .7       2.2
   Nov.     r -.3         .4     r -1.6      r -.1       r 1.0       r -.1     r 3.7
   Dec.     r -.2         .4      r -.1        -.5         1.2         -.2     r 3.2
                                                                              
 2003                                                                         
   Jan.       1.6        1.6        4.8         .9         2.8         1.3       6.9
   Feb.       1.0         .6        7.4        -.5         3.5         2.1       4.8
   Mar.       1.5         .1        5.7         .7         4.2         2.0      13.3
r=revised.  Some of the figures shown above and elsewhere in this release may differ 
from those previously reported because data for November 2002 have been revised to 
reflect the availability of late reports and corrections by respondents.

                                    -2-

     Over half of the March increase in the Producer Price Index for
Finished Goods was due to prices for finished energy goods, which rose 5.7
percent after advancing 7.4 percent in February.  Most of the remaining
upward movement in March's finished goods index can be traced to a 0.7-
percent increase in prices for finished goods other than foods and energy,
reflecting higher prices for passenger cars and light motor trucks.  The
finished consumer foods index edged up 0.1 percent in March, after climbing
0.6 percent in February.

     During the first quarter of 2003, prices for finished goods advanced
at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 17.4 percent, after rising at a 1.2-
percent rate during the final three months of 2002.  Excluding prices for
foods and energy, the finished goods index increased at a 4.6-percent
seasonally adjusted annual rate for the three months ended March 2003,
following a 1.3-percent rate of decline in the last quarter of 2002.  Among
prices for raw and partially processed goods, the intermediate goods index
moved up at a 23.8-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate during the first
quarter of 2003, after advancing at a 1.9-percent rate in the last three
months of 2002.  The seasonally adjusted annual rate of increase for crude
goods prices accelerated from 43.0 percent to 159.9 percent from the final
quarter of 2002 to the first quarter of 2003.  (See summary below.)

     Before seasonal adjustment, the Producer Price Index for Finished
Goods increased 1.4 percent to 144.5 (1982 = 100).  From March 2002 to
March 2003, prices for finished goods rose 4.2 percent.  During the same
period, the finished energy goods index jumped 26.5 percent and prices for
finished goods other than foods and energy moved up 0.9 percent.  By
contrast, the index for finished consumer foods declined 0.6 percent for
the 12 months ended March 2003.  At the earlier stages of processing,
intermediate goods prices climbed 8.0 percent and the crude goods index
soared 47.3 percent.

Summary of December-to-December and 3-month seasonally adjusted annual rates for selected 
stages of process 
 ______________________________________________________________________________________________
|                               |     Percentage     |                                         |
|                               |      change 12     |  Seasonally adjusted annual rate for    |
|                               |    months ended    |          3 months ended in:             |
|           Grouping            |     in December    |                                         |
|                               |--------------------|-----------------------------------------|
|                               | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |June 2002|Sept. 2002|Dec. 2002 |Mar. 2003|
|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
Finished goods                     3.6   -1.6    1.2    -1.7        1.2        1.2      17.4
   Finished consumer foods         1.7    1.8    -.6   -11.4       -3.7        5.0       9.2
   Finished energy goods          16.6  -17.1   11.9     3.3       15.9        6.8     100.1
   Finished goods less foods   
   and energy                      1.3     .9    -.4      .8        -.5       -1.3       4.6
      Finished consumer goods,            
      excluding foods and energy   1.4    1.5    -.1     1.8        -.5        -.8       4.4
      Capital equipment            1.2      0    -.9     -.9        -.6       -1.7       4.7
                                                                      
Intermediate materials, supplies,       
and components                     4.1   -4.0    3.2     3.2        4.8        1.9      23.8
   Intermediate foods and feeds    3.6     .3    4.5    -2.1       13.2        5.9       6.9
   Intermediate energy goods      19.0  -16.9   11.4    11.7       15.6        5.0     158.9
   Intermediate materials less     
   foods and energy                1.6   -1.6    1.6     1.8        2.4        1.2       5.1
      Materials for nondurable           
      manufacturing                4.1   -5.5    4.3     7.5        9.0         .6      24.4
      Materials for durable     
      manufacturing                 .2   -4.0    3.2     3.3        3.6        2.6       1.6
      Materials and components                  
      for construction              .1      0     .8     1.3        2.1       -1.3       2.1

Crude materials for further   
processing                        35.5  -32.5   26.1     4.3       20.9       43.0     159.9   
   Foodstuffs and feedstuffs       7.4   -7.6    4.4   -26.3       15.4       10.9      15.8
   Crude energy materials         85.6  -52.9   66.1    40.1       37.5      110.8     528.0
   Crude nonfood materials less   
   energy                         -5.5   -9.9   12.4    30.2        4.4        7.1      20.3
NOTE: Late reports and corrections by respondents may cause some indexes to change 4 months 
after original publication.  In addition, seasonally adjusted indexes may be revised for 5 
years, due to the recalculation of seasonal factors each January.

                                    -3-
                                     
Finished goods

     Prices for finished energy goods moved up 5.7 percent in March,
following a 7.4-percent increase in the previous month.  The gasoline index
rose 4.6 percent, after jumping 18.8 percent in February.  Prices for
liquefied petroleum gas, home heating oil, diesel fuel, and kerosene also
advanced at a slower pace than they did a month earlier.  By contrast, the
rate of increase in the index for residential natural gas accelerated from
4.8 percent in February to 15.2 percent in March.  Prices for residential
electric power also rose more than they did in the prior month.  The
finished energy goods index surged at a 100.1-percent seasonally adjusted
annual rate from December 2002 to March 2003, after advancing at a 6.8-
percent rate in the final quarter of 2002.

     Prices for finished consumer goods other than foods and energy turned
up 0.7 percent in March, after falling 0.5-percent in the previous month.
The light motor trucks index rose 5.2 percent, compared with a 3.9-percent
decrease in February.  Prices charged by passenger car manufacturers rose
3.3 percent in March, following a 0.6-percent decline in the prior month.
February price declines preceded March increases for women's apparel,
pharmaceutical preparations, alcoholic beverages, and men's and boys'
apparel.  The index for cigarettes moved up, after showing no change in
February.  On the other hand, prices for sanitary papers and health
products dropped 5.2 percent in March, compared with a 0.1-percent decrease
a month earlier.  The newspaper circulation index showed no change, after
going up in the previous month.  Prices for soaps and synthetic detergents
and jewelry (platinum and karat gold) turned down, following February
increases.  Prices for finished consumer goods excluding foods and energy
advanced at a 4.4-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate in the first
quarter of 2003, after posting a 0.8-percent rate of decline in the last
quarter of 2002.

Table B.  Monthly and annual percent changes in selected price indexes for 
intermediate goods and crude goods, seasonally adjusted
 __________________________________________________________________________________
|      |                                     |                                     |
|      |       Intermediate goods            |       Crude goods                   |
|      |                                     |                                     |
|      |---------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|      |       |        |         |Change in |       |         |         | Change  |
|      |       |        |         | interme- |       |         |         |in crude |
|      |       |        |         |  diate   |       |         |         | goods   |
|      |       |        |         |goods from|       |         |         | from 12 |
|      |       |        | Except  |12 months |       |         | Except  | months  |
|      |       |        |foods and|   ago    |       | Energy  |foods and|  ago    |
|Month | Foods | Energy | energy  | (unadj.) | Foods | (unadj.)| energy  |(unadj.) |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
 2002                                                           
  Mar.     0.4     3.6      0.2        -3.5     -0.5     16.9      0.5      -21.6
  Apr.     -.7     4.5       .2        -2.7     -6.1     19.4      1.9      -18.6
  May      -.9    -2.0        0        -3.2      -.1       .9      1.9      -16.3
  June     1.1      .3       .2        -2.8     -1.2     -9.7      2.8      -12.4
  July     1.3       0       .2        -1.5       .6       .3      1.7       -6.2
  Aug.      .7     1.5       .2        -1.0      1.7      3.2      -.4       -3.8
  Sept.    1.1     2.2       .1         -.6      1.3      4.6      -.2        3.1
  Oct.     -.3     3.4       .2         1.6       .2      5.1       .3       15.4
  Nov.    r .5    -1.2     r .1       r 2.4    r 1.1    r 7.8    r 1.4     r 13.7
  Dec.   r 1.3    -1.0      r 0         3.2    r 1.3    r 6.3     r .1       26.1
                                                                           
 2003                                                                       
  Jan.     1.3     6.1       .3         4.5      5.4     11.0      1.0       29.3
  Feb.      .7     8.5       .7         6.7       .7      9.3      2.7       36.8
  Mar.     -.2    10.2       .2         8.0     -2.3     30.5      1.0       47.3
r=revised.  Some of the figures shown above and elsewhere in this release may 
differ from those previously reported because data for November 2002 have been 
revised to reflect the availability of late reports and corrections by respondents.

                                    -4-
                                     
     The capital equipment index increased 0.8 percent in March, following
a 0.4-percent decline in the prior month.  Prices for light motor trucks,
passenger cars, x-ray and electromedical equipment, and printing trades
machinery also advanced, following decreases in the previous month.  The
electronic computer and heavy motor truck indexes fell less in March than
they did in February, while civilian aircraft prices climbed at a quicker
rate than they did a month earlier.  Partially offsetting these
accelerating prices for capital equipment, the communication and related
equipment index turned down 0.4 percent in March, compared with a 0.5-
percent gain in the previous month.  Prices for commercial furniture and
plastic working machinery also fell, after rising in February.  The March
index for integrating and measuring instruments rose less than it did in
the prior month.  During the first three months of 2003, the capital
equipment index rose at a 4.7-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate,
compared with a 1.7-percent rate of decrease in the fourth quarter of 2002.

     The finished consumer foods index inched up 0.1 percent in March,
following a 0.6-percent increase in the previous month.  Rising prices for
fresh and dry vegetables, processed young chickens, eggs for fresh use, and
for finfish and shellfish outweighed falling prices for fresh fruits and
melons, pork, dairy products, processed fruits and vegetables, processed
turkeys, and bakery products.  The index for finished consumer foods
increased at a 9.2-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate in the first
quarter of 2003, after moving up at a 5.0-percent rate in the last three
months of 2002.

Intermediate goods

     The index for Intermediate Materials, Supplies, and Components
advanced 2.0 percent in March, after rising 2.1 percent in February.  Price
increases for intermediate energy goods and nondurable manufacturing
materials more than offset declining prices for materials for durable
manufacturing, materials and components for construction, and intermediate
foods and feeds in March.  The index for intermediate goods other than
foods and energy went up 0.2 percent in March, after rising 0.7 percent in
February.  (See table B.)

     The index for intermediate energy goods jumped 10.2 percent in March,
following an 8.5-percent advance in the prior month.  Prices for utility
natural gas led this acceleration.  Industrial natural gas prices increased
24.8 percent, after rising 6.1 percent; the commercial natural gas index
advanced 20.2 percent, compared with a 5.1-percent gain in February; and
prices for natural gas to electric utilities surged 54.7 percent in March,
following a 26.4-percent increase in February.  Likewise, the indexes for
industrial electric power and jet fuels rose at a faster pace in March than
they did in the previous month.  By contrast, the index for gasoline
increased 4.6 percent in March, following an 18.8-percent gain in February.
Prices for diesel fuel, residual fuel, liquefied petroleum gas, and home
heating oil also rose at a slower rate in March than they did a month
earlier.  Prices for intermediate energy goods advanced at a 158.9-percent
seasonally adjusted annual rate from December 2002 to March 2003, after
registering a 5.0-percent rate of increase during the previous three
months.

     The index for materials for nondurable manufacturing increased 0.7
percent in March, after climbing 3.4 percent in the preceding month.
Prices for primary basic organic chemicals rose 1.0 percent, compared with
a 19.3-percent gain in February.  The indexes for plastic resins and
materials and paperboard turned down in March.  Prices for both finished
fabric and gray fabric dropped at a faster pace in March than they did in
the previous month.  On the other hand, the fertilizer materials index rose
at a faster rate in March than it did in February.  Prices for ethanol and
medicinal and botanical chemicals also moved up at a faster pace in March.
The indexes for inedible fats and oils and synthetic rubber turned up in
March.  From December 2002 to March 2003, the index for materials for
nondurable manufacturing advanced at a 24.4-percent seasonally adjusted
annual rate, following a 0.6-percent annual rate of increase during the
final quarter of 2002.

                                    -5-

     After posting a 0.6-percent gain in February, the index for materials
for durable manufacturing fell 0.3 percent.  Hot rolled steel sheet and
strip prices turned down 2.0 percent in March, following a 0.3-percent
increase in the prior month.  The index for primary nonferrous metals
(except precious) advanced at a slower pace in March than it did a month
earlier.  Prices for building paper and board and for copper and brass mill
shapes turned down in March.  On the other hand, the index for hot rolled
steel bars, plates, and structural shapes advanced 0.9 percent, after
posting a 0.7-percent decline in February.  Prices for semi-finished steel
mill products and flat glass also turned up in March.  The index for
materials for durable manufacturing increased at a seasonally adjusted
annual rate of 1.6 percent during the first quarter of 2003, after rising
at a 2.6-percent annual rate in the previous quarter.

     The index for materials and components for construction turned down
0.1 percent in March, after posting a 0.3-percent rise in the preceding
month.  Paving mixture and block prices inched down 0.1 percent, following
a 4.1-percent gain in February.  The index for softwood lumber fell at
faster rate in March than it did in the previous month.  Prices for steel
mill products, gypsum products, and mineral wool for structural insulation
turned down in March.  Alternatively, the index for plastic construction
products rose 0.7 percent, compared with a 0.1-percent increase in
February.  Prices for fabricated structural metal products and nonferrous
wire and cable turned up in March.  The asphalt felts and coatings index
advanced at a faster pace in March than it did in February.  During the
first quarter of 2003, prices for materials and components for construction
advanced at a 2.1-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate, following a 1.3-
percent annual rate of decline during the prior quarter.

     Subsequent to a 0.7-percent gain in February, the index for
intermediate foods and feeds declined 0.2 percent in March.  Beef and veal
prices turned down 0.2 percent in March, after rising 2.2 percent in the
prior month.  The indexes for confectionery materials, flour, and pork also
turned down in March.  By contrast, dry milk product prices fell 0.2
percent, following a 6.7-percent decline in February.  The indexes for
fluid milk products and crude vegetable oils decreased at a slower rate in
March than they did a month earlier.  From December 2002 to March 2003,
prices for intermediate foods and feeds rose at a 6.9-percent seasonally
adjusted annual rate, after increasing at a 5.9-percent annual rate for the
previous quarter.

Crude goods

     The Producer Price Index for Crude Materials for Further Processing
climbed 13.3 percent in March, following a 4.8-percent increase in
February.  This is the ninth consecutive gain in crude goods prices and
their largest rise since a 17.4-percent advance in January 2001.  March's
acceleration for the crude goods index was due to prices for crude energy
materials, which also rose at a faster pace than they did in February.  By
contrast, the index for crude foodstuffs and feedstuffs turned down in
March, while prices for basic industrial materials advanced at a slower
rate than they did a month earlier.  (See table B.)

     The crude energy materials index moved up 30.5 percent, after
advancing 9.3 percent in the previous month.  Natural gas prices rose 51.0
percent in March, the largest increase since a 56.4-percent jump in
November 2001.  In February, natural gas prices rose 11.5 percent.  Coal
prices turned up 1.0 percent, following a 2.8-percent decline in the
preceding month.  On the other hand, the crude petroleum index advanced 3.3
percent in March, after rising 10.0 percent a month earlier.  During the
first quarter of 2003, prices for crude energy materials increased at a
528.0-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate, after rising at a 110.8-
percent rate for the previous calendar quarter.

                                    -6-

     The index for crude foodstuffs and feedstuffs moved down 2.3 percent
in March, compared with a 0.7-percent gain in February.  Corn prices
dropped 5.0 percent, after rising 8.1 percent in the previous month.  The
indexes for slaughter hogs, wheat, and slaughter broilers and fryers also
turned down.  Prices for fluid milk and slaughter cattle fell more quickly
in March than they did a month earlier, while the March index for soybeans
increased at a slower pace over the same period.  Alternatively, prices for
fresh and dry vegetables climbed 15.9 percent, following an 11.7-percent
decline in the preceding month.  The indexes for unprocessed shellfish and
raw cane sugar rose at a faster rate in March than they did in the prior
month.  Subsequent to a 10.9-percent seasonally adjusted annual rate of
advance during the fourth quarter of 2002, prices for crude foodstuffs and
feedstuffs increased at a 15.8-percent rate during the first quarter of
2003.

     The index for crude nonfood materials less energy, which rose 2.7
percent in February, increased 1.0 percent in March.  Prices for iron and
steel scrap advanced 5.1 percent, after jumping 11.7 percent in the
previous month.  Leaf tobacco prices fell at a faster rate in March than
they did a month earlier.  The indexes for nonferrous metal ores, hides and
skins, and pulpwood turned down, following February gains.  Price increases
for raw cotton slowed in March.  Conversely, the index for wastepaper moved
up 8.1 percent, after rising 0.3 percent in the preceding month.  Prices
for phosphates and copper base scrap also advanced at a faster rate than
they did in the prior month.  For the calendar quarter ended March 2003,
the index for crude nonfood materials less energy jumped at a 20.3-percent
seasonally adjusted annual rate, which followed a 7.1-percent annual rate
of increase in the calendar quarter ended December 2002.

Net output price indexes for mining, manufacturing, and services industries

Mining.  The Producer Price Index for the Net Output of Total Mining
Industries jumped 24.3 percent in March, following an 8.9-percent gain in
February.  (Net output price indexes are not seasonally adjusted.)  The
index for the natural gas liquids and natural gas residue industry climbed
36.5 percent in March, following an 8.1-percent rise in February.  Prices
received by the crude petroleum and natural gas industry and the bituminous
coal underground mining industry also rose at a faster pace in March than
they did a month earlier.  The industry indexes for bituminous coal and
lignite surface mining and for kaolin and ball clay turned up in March.  By
contrast, the industry index for oil and gas well drilling posted a 1.6-
percent decline, after rising 0.7 percent in February.  The industry
indexes for gold ores, industrial sand, and anthracite mining turned down
in March.  In the first quarter of 2003, the Producer Price Index for the
Net Output of Total Mining Industries rose at a 376.6-percent annual rate,
compared with a 77.9-percent rate of increase in the last quarter of 2002.
In March, this index was 170.8 (December 1984=100), 95.2 percent above its
year-ago level.

Manufacturing.  The Producer Price Index for the Net Output of Total
Manufacturing Industries increased 0.8 percent in March, following a 1.4-
percent advance in February.  The petroleum refining and related products
industry group index advanced 5.6 percent, after an 18.8-percent gain in
the previous month.  The industry group indexes for food and kindred
products, paper and allied products, and lumber and wood products (except
furniture) turned down in March.  On the other hand, the industry group
index for transportation equipment turned up 1.7 percent in March,
following a 0.7-percent decline in the preceding month.  The electrical and
electronic machinery, equipment, and supplies index also turned up in
March.  The industry group indexes for rubber and miscellaneous plastic
products and for chemicals and allied products rose at a faster rate in
March than they did in February.  In the first quarter of 2003, the
Producer Price Index for the Net Output of Total Manufacturing Industries
rose at a 15.1-percent annual rate, compared with a 2.6-percent rate of
decline in the last quarter of 2002.  In March, this index was 138.9
(December 1984=100), 4.6 percent above its year-ago level.

                                    -7-

Services.  Among service industries, prices received by the industries for
property and casualty insurance, hotels and motels, general medical and
surgical hospitals, and trucking, except local, increased in March.
Alternatively, the industry indexes for life insurance carriers, operators
and lessors of nonresidential buildings, prepackaged software, and
passenger car rental fell in February.


                                   *****
             Producer Price Index data for April 2003 will be
          released on Thursday, May 15, 2003, at 8:30 a.m. (EDT).


                             NAICS Conversion

     The net output price indexes will be converted from the 1987 Standard
Industrial Classification (SIC) basis to the 2002 North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS) basis with the February 2004 release of
January 2004 indexes. The NAICS conversion involves major definitional
changes to many of the currently published SIC-based indexes.  After the
conversion to NAICS, SIC-based indexes will no longer be produced or
published.  Historical index data based on the NAICS publication structure
will be available depending on the scope of the definitional changes
between SIC and NAICS.

     For more information contact the Division of Industrial Prices and
Price Indexes, Section of Index Analysis and Public Information at ppi-
info@bls.gov or (202) 691-7705.

Table 1.  Producer price indexes and percent changes by stage of processing                                                          
(1982=100)                                                                                                                           
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                 |          |                       |Unadjusted     |                          
                                                 |          |                       |  percent      |Seasonally adjusted       
                                                 | Relative |    Unadjusted index   |change to      |percent change from:      
                    Grouping                     |importance|                       |Mar. 2003 from:|                          
                                                 |          |_______________________|_______________|__________________________
                                                 |   Dec.   |       |       |       |       |       |       |         |        
                                                 |          |Nov.   |Feb.   |Mar.   |  Mar. | Feb.  |Dec. to|Jan.  to |Feb.  to
                                                 |   2002 1/|2002 2/|2003 2/|2003 2/|  2002 | 2003  |  Jan. |   Feb.  |  Mar.  
_________________________________________________|__________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_________|________
                                                 |                                                                             
Finished goods...................................|  100.000   139.7   142.5   144.5     4.2    1.4      1.6      1.0     1.5   
  Finished consumer goods........................|   73.437   140.4   144.3   146.7     5.6    1.7      1.9      1.5     1.6   
    Finished consumer foods......................|   20.682   139.2   142.3   142.6     -.6     .2      1.6       .6      .1   
      Crude......................................|    1.329   123.2   117.0   123.3   -23.1    5.4      7.9     -2.7     5.6   
      Processed..................................|   19.352   140.5   144.4   144.2     1.6    -.1      1.1       .8     -.3   
    Finished consumer goods, excluding foods.....|   52.755   140.5   144.8   147.9     8.0    2.1      2.0      1.9     2.2   
      Nondurable goods less foods................|   36.542   142.0   148.7   152.5    11.6    2.6      2.2      3.1     2.5   
      Durable goods..............................|   16.213   133.6   132.7   134.5      .7    1.4      1.6     -1.0     1.7   
  Capital equipment..............................|   26.563   139.5   139.1   140.1      .4     .7       .7      -.4      .8   
    Manufacturing industries.....................|    7.829   140.0   140.0   140.3     0       .2       .1      -.1      .2   
    Nonmanufacturing industries..................|   18.733   139.2   138.7   139.9      .5     .9      1.0      -.5     1.1   
                                                 |                                                                             
Intermediate materials, supplies, and components.|  100.000   129.7   133.6   136.2     8.0    1.9      1.3      2.1     2.0   
  Materials and components for manufacturing.....|   46.943   127.6   129.6   129.9     3.8     .2       .5      1.3      .2   
    Materials for food manufacturing.............|    2.928   125.0   129.6   128.9     4.9    -.5      1.6       .6     -.7   
    Materials for nondurable manufacturing.......|   14.716   132.8   138.2   139.2    10.0     .7      1.4      3.4      .7   
    Materials for durable manufacturing..........|    9.143   126.3   127.2   127.0     2.8    -.2       .1       .6     -.3   
    Components for manufacturing.................|   20.156   126.0   125.9   126.1     -.2     .2      -.2       .1      .2   
  Materials and components for construction......|   12.773   151.2   152.2   152.2     1.0    0         .3       .3     -.1   
  Processed fuels and lubricants.................|   16.040   101.2   114.3   125.4    37.3    9.7      6.3      7.9    10.3   
    Manufacturing industries ....................|    6.410   104.0   113.8   124.8    32.2    9.7      4.9      5.9    10.7   
    Nonmanufacturing industries..................|    9.630    99.4   114.6   125.8    40.9    9.8      7.1      9.1    10.0   
  Containers.....................................|    3.252   153.4   153.9   154.1     1.6     .1       .1       .2      .1   
  Supplies.......................................|   20.992   139.6   140.5   141.2     2.1     .5       .2       .4      .4   
    Manufacturing industries.....................|    4.595   144.9   145.4   146.3     1.5     .6       .1       .3      .6   
    Nonmanufacturing industries..................|   16.397   137.0   138.1   138.7     2.3     .4       .3       .4      .4   
      Feeds......................................|    1.097   100.4   102.0   103.0     8.5    1.0       .5      1.0     1.0   
      Other supplies.............................|   15.300   141.6   142.6   143.1     1.9     .4       .4       .4      .4   
                                                 |                                                                             
Crude materials for further processing...........|  100.000   116.1   134.1   152.7    47.3   13.9      6.9      4.8    13.3   
  Foodstuffs and feedstuffs......................|   38.228    99.7   106.3   105.2     2.3   -1.0      5.4       .7    -2.3   
  Nonfood materials..............................|   61.772   125.3   151.9   185.7    84.0   22.3      7.9      7.4    22.2   
    Nonfood materials except fuel 3/.............|   32.486   102.6   120.8   123.4    28.0    2.2      8.2      5.8     2.1   
      Manufacturing 3/...........................|   31.651    94.1   111.1   113.6    28.8    2.3      8.5      5.9     2.1   
      Construction...............................|    0.835   181.8   181.1   181.3      .9     .1      -.9       .5      .2   
    Crude fuel 4/................................|   29.286   150.6   188.8   272.2   177.8   44.2      7.4      9.3    44.2   
      Manufacturing industries...................|    2.635   144.1   179.1   256.0   167.2   42.9      7.3      8.8    42.9   
      Nonmanufacturing industries................|   26.651   153.9   193.1   278.7   178.7   44.3      7.4      9.3    44.3   
                                                 |                                                                             
               Special groupings                 |                                                                             
                                                 |                                                                             
Finished goods, excluding foods..................|5/ 79.318   139.6   142.3   144.7     5.5    1.7      1.7      1.1     1.8   
Intermediate materials less foods and feeds......|6/ 95.975   130.3   134.3   137.1     8.1    2.1      1.3      2.1     2.2   
Intermediate foods and feeds.....................|6/  4.025   117.5   121.2   121.0     5.9    -.2      1.3       .7     -.2   
Crude materials less agricultural products 3/ 7/.|8/ 59.797   126.6   154.3   189.8    86.1   23.0      8.1      7.5    23.0   
                                                 |                                                                             
Finished energy goods............................|5/ 14.889    91.3   101.5   107.5    26.5    5.9      4.8      7.4     5.7   
Finished goods less energy.......................|5/ 85.111   147.6   148.2   148.9      .5     .5      1.1      -.3      .6   
Finished consumer goods less energy..............|5/ 58.548   151.0   152.1   152.7      .5     .4      1.1      -.1      .5   
                                                 |                                                                             
Finished goods less foods and energy.............|5/ 64.429   150.9   150.6   151.5      .9     .6       .9      -.5      .7   
Finished consumer goods less foods and energy....|5/ 37.866   158.6   158.4   159.2     1.1     .5       .9      -.5      .7   
Consumer nondurable goods less foods and energy..|5/ 21.653   178.9   179.3   179.2     1.6    -.1       .4      -.1     -.1   
                                                 |                                                                             
Intermediate energy goods........................|6/ 16.398   101.0   113.8   124.8    37.3    9.7      6.1      8.5    10.2   
Intermediate materials less energy...............|6/ 83.601   135.5   137.1   137.4     2.7     .2       .4       .7      .1   
Intermediate materials less foods and energy.....|6/ 79.577   136.7   138.2   138.5     2.6     .2       .3       .7      .2   
                                                 |                                                                             
Crude energy materials 3/........................|8/ 42.616   120.0   154.8   202.0   124.7   30.5     11.0      9.3    30.5   
Crude materials less energy......................|8/ 57.384   109.8   116.6   116.1     6.2    -.4      3.9      1.4    -1.2   
Crude nonfood materials less energy 4/...........|8/ 19.156   139.8   146.7   148.3    15.0    1.1      1.0      2.7     1.0   
                                                 |                                                                             
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                                                                                               
  1/  Comprehensive relative importance figures are initially computed          3/  Includes crude petroleum.                  
      after the publication of December indexes and are recalculated            4/  Excludes crude petroleum.                  
      after final December indexes are available.  The first-published          5/  Percent of total finished goods.           
      and final December relative importances initially appear,                 6/  Percent of total intermediate materials.   
      respectively, in the release tables containing January and May data.      7/  Formerly titled "Crude materials for       
  2/  The indexes for November 2002 have been recalculated to incorporate           further processing, excluding crude        
      late reports and corrections by respondents.  All indexes                     foodstuffs and feedstuffs, plant and       
      are subject to revision 4 months after original publication.                  animal fibers, oilseeds, and leaf tobacco."
                                                                                8/  Percent of total crude materials.          
Table 2.  Producer price indexes and percent changes for selected commodity groupings by stage of processing                         
(1982=100 unless otherwise indicated)                                                                                                
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 
           |                                                       |                       |Unadjusted     |                         
           |                                                       |                       | percent       |Seasonally adjusted      
           |                                                       |   Unadjusted index    |change to      |percent change from:     
 Commodity |                                                       |                       |Mar. 2003 from:|                         
   code    |                      Grouping                         |_______________________|_______________|________________________ 
           |                                                       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |         
           |                                                       |Nov.   |Feb.   |Mar.   | Mar.  | Feb.  |Dec. to|Jan. to|Feb. to  
           |                                                       |2002 1/|2003 1/|2003 1/| 2002  | 2003  |  Jan. |  Feb. |  Mar.   
___________|_______________________________________________________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|________ 
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           |FINISHED GOODS.........................................| 139.7   142.5   144.5     4.2    1.4      1.6     1.0     1.5   
           | FINISHED CONSUMER GOODS...............................| 140.4   144.3   146.7     5.6    1.7      1.9     1.5     1.6   
           |  FINISHED CONSUMER FOODS..............................| 139.2   142.3   142.6     -.6     .2      1.6      .6      .1   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
01-11      |   Fresh fruits and melons 2/..........................|  83.5    79.4    72.0   -21.1   -9.3      2.1     3.0    -9.3   
01-13      |   Fresh and dry vegetables 2/.........................| 119.7   118.7   137.6   -36.5   15.9     18.2   -11.7    15.9   
01-71-07   |   Eggs for fresh use (Dec. 1991=100)..................| 103.4    89.9    97.9     5.7    8.9      1.4     3.6     4.1   
02-11      |   Bakery products 2/..................................| 190.9   194.9   194.5     2.9    -.2      1.4      .4     -.2   
02-13      |   Milled rice 2/......................................|  83.0    87.9    88.1    11.9     .2       .6     2.3      .2   
02-14-02   |   Pasta products (June 1985=100) 2/...................| 121.5   126.5   126.3     3.3    -.2      2.0     2.1     -.2   
02-21-01   |   Beef and veal 2/....................................| 111.1   126.7   126.4     4.6    -.2      5.3     2.2     -.2   
02-21-04   |   Pork................................................| 105.4   112.2   111.7    -3.0    -.4      4.6     1.1    -2.8   
02-22-03   |   Processed young chickens............................| 104.7   112.7   116.4     4.7    3.3      3.9     6.6     2.5   
02-22-06   |   Processed turkeys...................................|  93.8    88.6    88.7    -7.7     .1      4.4      .2    -2.2   
02-23      |   Finfish and shellfish...............................| 199.7   193.3   197.6     6.7    2.2      4.3     1.7     2.2   
02-3       |   Dairy products......................................| 134.1   133.6   132.5    -4.1    -.8       .4     -.2    -1.0   
02-4       |   Processed fruits and vegetables 2/..................| 133.2   133.7   133.2      .8    -.4       .2      .1     -.4   
02-55      |   Confectionery end products 2/.......................| 174.8   182.5   182.4     4.0    -.1      1.3     1.6     -.1   
02-62      |   Soft drinks.........................................| 152.2   153.0   152.3      .8    -.5      -.5    -1.0      .1   
02-63-01   |   Roasted coffee 2/...................................| 121.5   122.3   122.4      .9     .1       .6      .7      .1   
02-78      |   Shortening and cooking oils 2/......................| 152.1   153.1   152.1    15.3    -.7      -.9     -.5     -.7   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           |  FINISHED CONSUMER GOODS EXCLUDING FOODS..............| 140.5   144.8   147.9     8.0    2.1      2.0     1.9     2.2   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
02-61      |   Alcoholic beverages.................................| 148.2   148.6   149.2     1.9     .4       .1     -.1      .5   
03-81-01   |   Women's apparel 2/..................................| 122.9   120.7   121.6     -.5     .7      -.2     -.7      .7   
03-81-02   |   Men's and boys' apparel 2/..........................| 128.4   128.4   128.8     -.6     .3      -.1     -.5      .3   
03-81-03   |   Girls', children's, and infants' apparel 2/.........| 119.3   120.2   120.2     2.8    0         .3     0       0     
03-82      |   Textile housefurnishings 2/.........................| 122.3   121.9   121.9     -.6    0        0       0       0     
04-3       |   Footwear 2/.........................................| 146.1   147.1   148.0     1.5     .6      0        .4      .6   
05-41      |   Residential electric power (Dec. 1990=100)..........| 113.4   113.3   114.9     2.0    1.4       .1      .6     1.2   
05-51      |   Residential gas (Dec. 1990=100).....................| 140.8   152.8   173.5    36.4   13.5      2.4     4.8    15.2   
05-71      |   Gasoline............................................|  87.9   112.7   120.5    54.7    6.9     13.7    18.8     4.6   
05-73-02-01|   Fuel oil No. 2......................................|  79.9   116.8   129.3    85.5   10.7     19.7    25.2    13.5   
06-38      |   Pharmaceutical preparations (June 2001=100) 2/......| 104.2   105.4   105.5     3.6     .1      1.2     -.3      .1   
06-71      |   Soaps and synthetic detergents 2/...................| 130.5   130.1   129.0     -.5    -.8      -.7      .2     -.8   
06-75      |   Cosmetics and other toilet preparations 2/..........| 139.5   140.0   140.2      .7     .1       .3     0        .1   
07-12      |   Tires, tubes, tread, etc 2/.........................|  95.3    97.8    97.8     2.4    0        1.9      .7     0     
09-15-01   |   Sanitary papers and health products 2/..............| 151.0   151.0   143.1    -2.9   -5.2       .2     -.1    -5.2   
09-31-01   |   Newspaper circulation 2/............................| 227.2   229.9   229.9     2.2    0        -.1     1.9     0     
09-32-01   |   Periodical circulation..............................| 212.0   219.8   216.9     4.4   -1.3      3.0     -.5    -1.1   
09-33      |   Book publishing.....................................| 238.2   239.5   239.9     2.7     .2      1.2     0       -.2   
12-1       |   Household furniture.................................| 157.7   157.9   158.2     1.2     .2       .2     -.1      .2   
12-3       |   Floor coverings 2/..................................| 132.1   130.6   131.5     1.5     .7      1.2     -.3      .7   
12-4       |   Household appliances 2/.............................| 103.9   103.7   102.5    -2.0   -1.2      1.0     -.9    -1.2   
12-5       |   Home electronic equipment 2/........................|  68.3    68.3    67.8    -2.7    -.7      0       -.1     -.7   
12-62      |   Household glassware.................................| 169.8   163.9   166.4    -3.0    1.5     -3.2     -.3     1.0   
12-64      |   Household flatware 2/...............................| 145.2   145.2   145.2     1.2    0        0       0       0     
12-66      |   Lawn and garden equip., ex. tractors 2/.............| 134.0   133.5   133.4     -.3    -.1      -.1      .3     -.1   
14-11-01   |   Passenger cars......................................| 130.8   129.7   133.0     2.2    2.5      3.5     -.6     3.3   
15-11      |   Toys, games, and children's vehicles 2/.............| 124.9   125.2   125.3      .6     .1       .5     0        .1   
15-12      |   Sporting and athletic goods 2/......................| 124.8   124.3   124.9     -.5     .5      -.2     -.3      .5   
15-2       |   Tobacco products 2/.................................| 467.6   467.1   468.2     4.3     .2      -.2      .1      .2   
15-5       |   Mobile homes 2/.....................................| 167.2   166.5   166.8      .7     .2      0       0        .2   
15-94-02   |   Jewelry, platinum, & karat gold 2/..................| 130.1   133.4   132.8     2.0    -.4      1.2     1.3     -.4   
15-94-04   |   Costume jewelry and novelties 2/....................| 144.4   144.4   144.4      .5    0        0       0       0     
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           | CAPITAL EQUIPMENT.....................................| 139.5   139.1   140.1      .4     .7       .7     -.4      .8   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
11-1       |   Agricultural machinery and equipment 2/.............| 159.4   158.5   158.5      .3    0         .1      .1     0     
11-2       |   Construction machinery and equipment................| 151.7   153.0   152.9     1.1    -.1       .5     -.1     -.1   
11-37      |   Metal cutting machine tools 2/......................| 150.6   150.2   150.4    -1.9     .1      -.3      .1      .1   
11-38      |   Metal forming machine tools 2/......................| 167.3   167.3   167.3      .5    0        0       0       0     
11-39      |   Tools, dies, jigs, fixtures, and ind. molds 2/......| 140.5   140.5   140.5     -.2    0        -.4      .4     0     
11-41      |   Pumps, compressors, and equipment...................| 161.4   162.0   162.5     1.3     .3      -.2     0        .2   
11-44      |   Industrial material handling equipment 2/...........| 137.1   137.6   137.8      .4     .1      0        .1      .1   
11-51      |   Electronic computers (Dec. 1998=100) 2/.............|  38.9    35.7    35.2   -22.6   -1.4      -.8    -6.3    -1.4   
11-62      |   Textile machinery 2/................................| 157.1   157.3   157.9      .3     .4       .2     0        .4   
11-64      |   Paper industries machinery (June 1982=100)..........| 169.6   170.2   170.3     1.2     .1      -.2      .3     -.1   
11-65      |   Printing trades machinery 2/........................| 144.1   142.5   142.6     -.6     .1      0      -1.2      .1   
11-74      |   Transformers and power regulators 2/................| 131.2   132.2   132.4      .7     .2      -.2      .2      .2   
11-76      |   Communication & related equip. (Dec. 1985=100) 2/...| 106.8   106.7   106.3    -2.3    -.4       .2      .5     -.4   
11-79-05   |   X-ray and electromedical equipment 2/...............| 100.5    99.1   100.2     -.5    1.1      -.6    -1.1     1.1   
11-91      |   Oil field and gas field machinery ..................| 136.0   136.8   136.8      .7    0         .2     -.1     0     
11-92      |   Mining machinery and equipment 2/...................| 152.5   154.8   155.0     2.7     .1       .1      .1      .1   
11-93      |   Office and store machines and equipment 2/..........| 112.3   111.8   111.8     -.4    0        -.5     -.2     0     
12-2       |   Commercial furniture 2/.............................| 161.9   162.1   162.0     1.1    -.1       .4      .4     -.1   
14-11-05   |   Light motor trucks..................................| 152.2   148.6   155.1      .9    4.4      4.1    -3.9     5.2   
14-11-06   |   Heavy motor trucks 2/...............................| 155.2   155.9   155.8     3.2    -.1      0       -.4     -.1   
14-14      |   Truck trailers 2/...................................| 138.2   138.6   139.5     1.4     .6      0        .2      .6   
14-21-02   |   Civilian aircraft (Dec. 1985=100)...................| 173.7   174.6   175.4     3.3     .5       .2      .2      .6   
14-31      |   Ships (Dec. 1985=100) 2/............................| 152.9   155.1   158.2     5.7    2.0      -.3     2.8     2.0   
14-4       |   Railroad equipment 2/...............................| 134.5   135.5   135.7      .4     .1       .1      .5      .1   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           |INTERMEDIATE MATERIALS, SUPPLIES, AND COMPONENTS.......| 129.7   133.6   136.2     8.0    1.9      1.3     2.1     2.0   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           | INTERMEDIATE FOODS AND FEEDS..........................| 117.5   121.2   121.0     5.9    -.2      1.3      .7     -.2   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
02-12-03   |   Flour 2/............................................| 122.2   125.1   123.4     8.9   -1.4      1.7     1.9    -1.4   
02-53      |   Refined sugar and byproducts 2/.....................| 119.0   122.5   122.5     4.4    0         .2     1.3     0     
02-54      |   Confectionery materials 2/..........................| 122.0   127.8   125.4    10.4   -1.9      -.4     3.0    -1.9   
02-72      |   Crude vegetable oils 2/.............................| 110.3   112.8   110.2    54.8   -2.3      3.2    -4.2    -2.3   
02-9       |   Prepared animal feeds 2/............................| 107.4   108.9   109.7     6.4     .7       .7      .7      .7   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           | INTERMEDIATE MATERIALS LESS FOODS AND FEEDS...........| 130.3   134.3   137.1     8.1    2.1      1.3     2.1     2.2   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
03-1       |   Synthetic fibers 2/.................................| 107.0   106.7   106.3      .4    -.4      -.2      .6     -.4   
03-2       |   Processed yarns and threads 2/......................| 102.5   102.4   103.0      .9     .6      -.7      .5      .6   
03-3       |   Gray fabrics 2/.....................................| 111.9   110.5   108.1    -4.6   -2.2      -.8     -.5    -2.2   
03-4       |   Finished fabrics....................................| 121.2   121.3   120.4     -.7    -.7       .7     -.1    -1.5   
03-83-03   |   Industrial textile products 2/......................| 131.0   131.5   131.1    -1.4    -.3      -.8     -.1     -.3   
04-2       |   Leather 2/..........................................| 209.0   211.3   210.9     7.4    -.2       .3     1.1     -.2   
05-32      |   Liquefied petroleum gas 2/..........................| 123.9   172.7   178.3    95.7    3.2     13.9    16.8     3.2   
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 
See footnotes at end of table.                                                                                                       


Table 2.  Producer price indexes and percent changes for selected commodity groupings by stage of processing - Continued             
(1982=100 unless otherwise indicated)                                                                                                
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 
           |                                                       |                       |Unadjusted     |                         
           |                                                       |                       | percent       |Seasonally adjusted      
           |                                                       |   Unadjusted index    |change to      |percent change from:     
 Commodity |                                                       |                       |Mar. 2003 from:|                         
   code    |                      Grouping                         |_______________________|_______________|________________________ 
           |                                                       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |         
           |                                                       |Nov.   |Feb.   |Mar.   | Mar.  | Feb.  |Dec. to|Jan. to|Feb. to  
           |                                                       |2002 1/|2003 1/|2003 1/| 2002  | 2003  |  Jan. |  Feb. |  Mar.   
___________|_______________________________________________________|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|_______|________ 
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           | INTERMEDIATE MATERIALS LESS FOODS AND FEEDS           |                                                                 
           |   -Continued..........................................|                                                                 
05-42      |   Commercial electric power...........................| 134.6   135.3   136.7     2.4    1.0      0.8     0.4     0.9   
05-43      |   Industrial electric power...........................| 139.5   140.2   142.8     5.2    1.9       .1      .5     1.9   
05-52      |   Commercial natural gas (Dec. 1990=100)..............| 148.4   163.3   192.0    46.2   17.6      4.3     5.1    20.2   
05-53      |   Industrial natural gas (Dec. 1990=100)..............| 151.5   170.9   206.0    56.2   20.5      7.3     6.1    24.8   
05-54      |   Natural gas to electric utilities (Dec. 1990=100)...| 127.4   176.0   257.9   180.0   46.5      4.3    26.4    54.7   
05-72-03   |   Jet fuels...........................................|  79.8   105.2   117.8    92.8   12.0     25.9    10.4    15.4   
05-73-03   |   No. 2 Diesel fuel...................................|  85.5   124.2   129.3    85.5    4.1     17.6    25.2     1.4   
05-74      |   Residual fuel 2/....................................|  92.7   108.3   113.2    87.1    4.5     16.8    25.9     4.5   
06-1       |   Industrial chemicals 2/.............................| 133.6   146.9   148.4    20.6    1.0      4.2     6.4     1.0   
06-21      |   Prepared paint......................................| 167.7   169.0   169.1     1.7     .1      -.8      .9      .1   
06-22      |   Paint materials 2/..................................| 171.7   172.8   173.8    12.6     .6      -.2      .2      .6   
06-31      |   Medicinal and botanical chemicals 2/................| 132.4   133.1   134.3     1.6     .9       .4      .2      .9   
06-4       |   Fats and oils, inedible.............................| 107.2   115.5   122.0    54.0    5.6     11.4     -.4     8.2   
06-51      |   Mixed fertilizers...................................| 114.2   114.1   120.7     5.9    5.8      -.3     -.3     5.3   
06-52-01   |   Nitrogenates........................................| 111.7   131.6   149.4    45.9   13.5      2.3     6.0    13.0   
06-52-02   |   Phosphates 2/.......................................| 101.1   102.3   108.4     8.2    6.0       .7      .4     6.0   
06-53      |   Other agricultural chemicals 2/.....................| 147.4   148.2   149.2      .3     .7       .2    -1.6      .7   
06-6       |   Plastic resins and materials........................| 137.0   143.2   145.0    17.8    1.3      2.1     3.5     -.1   
07-11-02   |   Synthetic rubber 2/.................................| 123.4   123.3   124.9     6.7    1.3      2.1     -.5     1.3   
07-21      |   Plastic construction products ......................| 134.8   137.2   138.7     4.4    1.1      2.6      .1      .7   
07-22      |   Unsupported plastic film, sheet, & other shapes 2/..| 136.9   139.6   145.8     8.5    4.4       .4     1.6     4.4   
07-26      |   Plastic parts and components for manufacturing 2/...| 116.0   116.0   116.1     -.1     .1      -.4     -.1      .1   
08-11      |   Softwood lumber.....................................| 164.8   168.4   164.2    -7.9   -2.5     -1.9     -.1    -4.1   
08-12      |   Hardwood lumber ....................................| 180.4   183.0   185.6     4.9    1.4       .5      .7     1.3   
08-2       |   Millwork............................................| 180.0   180.0   180.2      .6     .1       .1      .2     0     
08-3       |   Plywood 2/..........................................| 147.3   147.2   146.0    -8.9    -.8      -.3      .9     -.8   
09-11      |   Woodpulp 2/.........................................| 119.4   116.2   116.1     2.6    -.1     -1.8     0       -.1   
09-13      |   Paper 2/............................................| 145.6   145.1   144.9      .1    -.1      -.4     -.3     -.1   
09-14      |   Paperboard 2/.......................................| 167.3   166.8   164.6     1.2   -1.3      -.1      .1    -1.3   
09-15-03   |   Paper boxes and containers 2/.......................| 174.5   174.1   174.1     1.1    0        -.2     0       0     
09-2       |   Building paper and board 2/.........................| 129.6   137.1   132.9      .5   -3.1       .4     6.2    -3.1   
09-37      |   Commercial printing (June 1982=100) 2/..............| 157.0   157.9   157.6     1.0    -.2      -.1      .3     -.2   
10-15      |   Foundry and forge shop products.....................| 137.0   137.1   137.1      .2    0        -.2      .1      .1   
10-17      |   Steel mill products.................................| 110.4   109.8   109.5     9.9    -.3       .3     1.1     -.6   
10-22      |   Primary nonferrous metals 2/........................| 100.8   106.6   107.0     3.9     .4       .2     3.5      .4   
10-25-01   |   Aluminum mill shapes 2/.............................| 143.3   143.1   143.3    -1.4     .1      -.5      .2      .1   
10-25-02   |   Copper and brass mill shapes 2/.....................| 145.6   151.7   148.1    -3.8   -2.4       .8     2.3    -2.4   
10-26      |   Nonferrous wire and cable 2/........................| 133.3   131.6   131.8    -2.6     .2      -.6     -.5      .2   
10-3       |   Metal containers 2/.................................| 108.3   109.6   109.6     1.3    0        1.0      .1     0     
10-4       |   Hardware 2/.........................................| 155.5   156.1   155.8     -.3    -.2       .3     -.1     -.2   
10-5       |   Plumbing fixtures and brass fittings................| 181.3   183.1   183.1      .7    0        -.1     -.1     0     
10-6       |   Heating equipment 2/................................| 158.2   163.5   163.1     3.2    -.2      2.2     1.1     -.2   
10-7       |   Fabricated structural metal products 2/.............| 145.6   145.5   145.6     1.2     .1       .2     -.1      .1   
10-88      |   Fabricated ferrous wire products (June 1982=100) 2/.| 130.0   129.6   129.5      .2    -.1      -.1      .1     -.1   
10-89      |   Other misc. metal products 2/.......................| 127.6   127.0   127.8     1.1     .6      -.5     -.1      .6   
11-45      |   Mechanical power transmission equipment.............| 169.8   171.2   171.2     1.0    0         .6     -.4     0     
11-48      |   Air conditioning and refrigeration equipment 2/.....| 136.9   137.4   137.3      .6    -.1       .2     0       -.1   
11-49-02   |   Metal valves, ex.fluid power (Dec. 1982=100)........| 168.1   168.2   168.9     1.3     .4       .1     0       0     
11-49-05   |   Ball and roller bearings............................| 170.4   171.2   171.2      .8    0         .5     -.2      .1   
11-71      |   Wiring devices 2/...................................| 153.2   153.3   153.5      .3     .1       .3      .1      .1   
11-73      |   Motors, generators, motor generator sets............| 147.3   147.6   147.7      .8     .1      -.1     -.1     -.1   
11-75      |   Switchgear, switchboard, etc., equipment 2/.........| 159.2   159.4   158.8      .2    -.4      -.4      .8     -.4   
11-78      |   Electronic components and accessories 2/............|  92.0    91.6    91.8    -1.5     .2      0       -.5      .2   
11-94      |   Internal combustion engines.........................| 145.8   144.0   144.0     -.1    0       -1.5      .3     0     
11-95      |   Machine shop products 2/............................| 140.4   140.4   140.6      .4     .1       .1     0        .1   
13-11      |   Flat glass 2/.......................................| 111.6   110.9   111.2      .4     .3      -.3     -.5      .3   
13-22      |   Cement..............................................| 153.5   153.3   152.8     2.3    -.3      -.1      .5      .3   
13-3       |   Concrete products...................................| 152.4   153.6   153.7      .9     .1       .3      .2      .1   
13-6       |   Asphalt felts and coatings..........................| 110.4   110.3   112.5     2.9    2.0      -.4     1.1     2.3   
13-7       |   Gypsum products 2/..................................| 172.3   170.8   165.7     2.7   -3.0     -1.0     1.2    -3.0   
13-8       |   Glass containers 2/.................................| 136.4   138.4   138.4     2.6    0        1.2     -.1     0     
14-12      |   Motor vehicle parts 2/..............................| 112.5   111.5   111.5    -1.8    0        -.9      .2     0     
14-23      |   Aircraft engines & engine parts (Dec. 1985=100).....| 145.6   152.7   152.6     4.4    -.1      -.1     4.1     -.1   
14-25      |   Aircraft parts & aux.equip.,nec (June 1985=100).....| 151.0   148.9   149.3    -1.3     .3     -1.1      .1      .4   
15-42      |   Photographic supplies 2/............................| 118.2   118.7   118.7    -8.6    0         .9    -1.2     0     
15-6       |   Medical/surgical/personal aid devices 2/............| 151.6   154.0   154.3     2.7     .2      1.5      .1      .2   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           | CRUDE MATERIALS FOR FURTHER PROCESSING................| 116.1   134.1   152.7    47.3   13.9      6.9     4.8    13.3   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           |  CRUDE FOODSTUFFS AND FEEDSTUFFS......................|  99.7   106.3   105.2     2.3   -1.0      5.4      .7    -2.3   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
01-21      |   Wheat 2/............................................| 111.1   102.7    96.6    16.0   -5.9     -8.3     5.3    -5.9   
01-22-02-05|   Corn................................................|  93.9    96.8    94.6    18.3   -2.3     -2.4     8.1    -5.0   
01-31      |   Slaughter cattle 2/.................................| 101.2   113.7   112.4      .7   -1.1      9.1     -.4    -1.1   
01-32      |   Slaughter hogs......................................|  46.8    56.6    56.3    -7.7    -.5      1.7     2.2    -6.5   
01-41-02   |   Slaughter broilers/fryers...........................| 117.2   144.3   145.2    14.8     .6     21.8     1.4     -.7   
01-42      |   Slaughter turkeys...................................| 114.0   100.0   100.8     5.1     .8      6.9     1.5    -3.9   
01-6       |   Fluid milk..........................................|  88.9    85.9    82.2   -13.4   -4.3      3.7    -1.7    -5.2   
01-83-01-31|   Soybeans 2/.........................................|  95.9    97.4    97.6    27.2     .2     -2.2     4.4      .2   
02-52-01-01|   Cane sugar,raw 2/...................................| 118.5   115.7   118.1    10.8    2.1     -2.3      .9     2.1   
                                                                                                                                     
           |                                                       |                                                                 
           |  CRUDE NONFOOD MATERIALS..............................| 125.3   151.9   185.7    84.0   22.3      7.9     7.4    22.2   
           |                                                       |                                                                 
01-51-01-01|   Raw cotton 2/.......................................|  73.6    85.8    89.4    64.3    4.2      4.0     6.5     4.2   
01-92-01-01|   Leaf tobacco 2/.....................................| 115.2   111.1    93.5    -3.3  -15.8      -.5    -4.1   -15.8   
04-19      |   Hides and skins (June 2001=100) 2/..................|  86.0    88.1    87.9    15.8    -.2      -.8     4.5     -.2   
05-1       |   Coal 2/.............................................|  99.2    97.0    98.0    -3.4    1.0      1.9    -2.8     1.0   
05-31      |   Natural gas 2/......................................| 167.5   219.6   331.5   245.7   51.0      8.2    11.5    51.0   
05-61      |   Crude petroleum 2/..................................|  67.6    94.6    97.7    50.3    3.3     20.4    10.0     3.3   
08-5       |   Logs, timber, etc...................................| 181.9   181.0   181.0     1.3    0       -1.3      .4      .2   
09-12      |   Wastepaper 2/.......................................| 190.2   182.7   197.5    44.7    8.1     -3.4      .3     8.1   
10-11      |   Iron ore 2/.........................................|  95.0    95.3    95.3     -.1    0         .6     -.3     0     
10-12      |   Iron and steel scrap................................| 144.3   167.0   176.3    39.8    5.6       .9    11.7     5.1   
10-21      |   Nonferrous metal ores (Dec. 1983=100) 2/............|  69.3    74.3    72.9     9.8   -1.9      5.2     2.6    -1.9   
10-23-01   |   Copper base scrap 2/................................| 114.3   119.1   121.4    10.5    1.9       .6     1.4     1.9   
10-23-02   |   Aluminum base scrap.................................| 158.4   168.4   170.2     8.8    1.1      -.2     1.8      .2   
13-21      |   Construction sand, gravel, and crushed stone........| 173.4   175.7   176.0     2.1     .2      -.3      .3      .1   
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 
                                                                                                                                     
1/  The indexes for November 2002 have been recalculated to incorporate               2/  Not seasonally adjusted.                    
    late reports and corrections by respondents.  All indexes are subject             3/  Not available.                              
    to revision 4 months after original publication.                                                                  
                                                                                                                          
Table 3.  Producer price indexes for selected commodity groupings                                                                    
(1982=100 unless otherwise indicated)                                                                                      
_______________________________________________________________________________________________                                      
         |                                                |                                   |                                      
         |                                                |         Unadjusted index 1/       |                                      
Commodity|                                                |___________________________________|                                      
  code   |                    Grouping                    | Nov. 2002 | Feb. 2003 |March 2003 |                                      
_________|________________________________________________|___________|___________|___________|                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         | Finished Goods (1967=100)......................|   392.0   |   399.9   |   405.4   |                                      
         | All commodities................................|   133.1   |   137.8   |   141.4   |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         |            MAJOR COMMODITY GROUPS              |           |           |           |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         | Farm products and processed foods and feeds....|   124.1   |   128.2   |   128.0   |                                      
01       |   Farm products................................|    99.1   |   104.2   |   103.5   |                                      
02       |   Processed foods and feeds....................|   136.5   |   140.1   |   140.0   |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         | Industrial commodities.........................|   134.7   |   139.5   |   143.7   |                                      
03       |   Textile products and apparel.................|   119.8   |   119.3   |   119.2   |                                      
04       |   Hides, skins, leather, and related products..|   160.9   |   162.4   |   162.6   |                                      
05       |   Fuels and related products and power.........|    99.5   |   115.2   |   130.2   |                                      
06       |   Chemicals and allied products 2/.............|   155.6   |   162.1   |   163.4   |                                      
07       |   Rubber and plastic products..................|   127.3   |   128.4   |   130.1   |                                      
08       |   Lumber and wood products.....................|   171.8   |   173.2   |   172.7   |                                      
09       |   Pulp, paper, and allied products.............|   187.5   |   188.7   |   188.3   |                                      
10       |   Metals and metal products....................|   127.3   |   128.4   |   128.7   |                                      
11       |   Machinery and equipment......................|   122.5   |   122.3   |   122.4   |                                      
12       |   Furniture and household durables.............|   133.9   |   133.7   |   133.6   |                                      
13       |   Nonmetallic mineral products.................|   146.5   |   147.5   |   147.5   |                                      
14       |   Transportation equipment.....................|   145.5   |   144.7   |   146.7   |                                      
15       |   Miscellaneous products.......................|   183.1   |   183.8   |   184.1   |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         | Industrial commodities less fuels and related  |           |           |           |                                      
         |   products and power...........................|   143.8   |   144.8   |   145.4   |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
         |             OTHER COMMODITY GROUPINGS          |           |           |           |                                      
         |                                                |           |           |           |                                      
01-1     | Fruits and melons, fresh and dry vegetables,   |           |           |           |                                      
         |   and tree nuts................................|   105.4   |   103.0   |   106.9   |                                      
01-2     | Grains.........................................|    98.8   |    98.6   |    95.4   |                                      
01-3     | Slaughter livestock............................|    87.2   |    98.9   |    98.1   |                                      
01-4     | Slaughter poultry..............................|   115.0   |   133.6   |   134.5   |                                      
01-5     | Plant and animal fibers........................|    74.7   |    87.1   |    90.6   |                                      
01-7     | Chicken eggs...................................|   120.5   |   106.1   |   113.9   |                                      
01-8     | Hay, hayseeds, and oilseeds....................|   121.7   |   122.1   |   122.5   |                                      
01-83    | Oilseeds.......................................|   106.5   |   108.3   |   108.8   |                                      
01-9     | Other farm products............................|   171.8   |   165.7   |   139.4   |                                      
02-1     | Cereal and bakery products.....................|   166.4   |   170.3   |   169.8   |                                      
02-2     | Meats, poultry, and fish.......................|   116.8   |   124.5   |   125.4   |                                      
02-22    | Processed poultry..............................|   108.6   |   112.3   |   114.6   |                                      
02-5     | Sugar and confectionery........................|   143.3   |   149.0   |   148.5   |                                      
02-6     | Beverages and beverage materials...............|   149.0   |   149.5   |   149.5   |                                      
02-63    | Packaged beverage materials....................|   125.2   |   124.8   |   124.8   |                                      
02-7     | Fats and oils..................................|   136.8   |   148.1   |   143.5   |                                      
03-81    | Apparel........................................|   125.5   |   124.6   |   125.2   |                                      
04-4     | Other leather and related products.............|   148.1   |   148.1   |   148.3   |                                      
05-3     | Gas fuels......................................|   154.7   |   205.1   |   290.9   |                                      
05-4     | Electric power.................................|   134.7   |   135.1   |   137.0   |                                      
05-7     | Refined petroleum products.....................|    85.8   |   110.8   |   118.6   |                                      
06-3     | Drugs and pharmaceuticals......................|   268.2   |   271.2   |   271.4   |                                      
06-5     | Agricultural chemicals and products............|   124.8   |   129.3   |   135.6   |                                      
06-7     | Other chemicals and allied products............|   139.9   |   140.2   |   140.3   |                                      
07-1     | Rubber and rubber products.....................|   117.6   |   118.8   |   119.0   |                                      
07-11    | Rubber, except natural rubber..................|   122.7   |   122.6   |   124.3   |                                      
07-13    | Miscellaneous rubber products..................|   140.6   |   141.0   |   140.8   |                                      
07-2     | Plastic products...............................|   135.0   |   136.2   |   138.5   |                                      
08-1     | Lumber.........................................|   167.6   |   170.7   |   169.0   |                                      
09-1     | Pulp, paper, and products, excluding building  |           |           |           |                                      
         |   paper and board..............................|   157.3   |   156.9   |   156.1   |                                      
09-15    | Converted paper and paperboard products........|   165.3   |   165.6   |   164.0   |                                      
10-1     | Iron and steel.................................|   118.2   |   120.1   |   120.7   |                                      
10-2     | Nonferrous metals..............................|   120.3   |   122.6   |   122.6   |                                      
10-25    | Nonferrous mill shapes.........................|   136.7   |   137.1   |   136.7   |                                      
11-3     | Metalworking machinery and equipment...........|   150.2   |   150.4   |   150.5   |                                      
11-4     | General purpose machinery and equipment........|   154.5   |   155.3   |   155.4   |                                      
11-6     | Special industry machinery.....................|   165.6   |   166.0   |   166.2   |                                      
11-7     | Electrical machinery and equipment.............|   115.8   |   115.5   |   115.5   |                                      
11-9     | Miscellaneous machinery and equipment..........|   137.0   |   136.8   |   136.9   |                                      
12-6     | Other household durable goods..................|   158.7   |   158.2   |   158.7   |                                      
13-2     | Concrete ingredients...........................|   163.1   |   164.5   |   164.4   |                                      
14-1     | Motor vehicles and equipment...................|   130.7   |   129.1   |   131.7   |                                      
15-1     | Toys, sporting goods, small arms, etc..........|   133.0   |   132.8   |   133.3   |                                      
15-4     | Photographic equipment and supplies............|   105.0   |   105.1   |   105.1   |                                      
15-9     | Other miscellaneous products...................|   140.0   |   140.9   |   141.7   |                                      
__________________________________________________________|___________|___________|___________|                                      
                                                                                                                                     
1/  Data for November 2002 have been revised to reflect the availability of late reports and                                                                             
    corrections by respondents.  All data are subject to revision 4 months after original                                                                                
    publication.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                     
2/  Prices of some items in this grouping are lagged 1 month.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                     
Table 4.  Producer price indexes for the net output of major industry groups, not seasonally adjusted                           
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________                 
                  |                                              |     |         Index         |  Percent change                     
  Industry        |                Industry 1/                   |Index|_______________________|to_Mar._2003_from:__                 
    code          |                                              |base |       |       |       |        |                            
                  |                                              |     |Nov.   |Feb.   |Mar.   |  Mar.  |  Feb.                      
                  |                                              |     |2002 2/|2003 2/|2003 2/|  2002  |  2003                      
__________________|______________________________________________|_____|_______|_______|_______|________|___________                 
                  |                                              |     |                                                             
                  |Total mining industries...................... |12/84| 110.5   137.4   170.8     95.2     24.3                     
       10         | Metal mining................................ |12/84|  74.2    78.4    77.3      6.0     -1.4                     
       12         | Coal mining................................. |12/85|  93.6    92.7    94.0      -.6      1.4                     
       13         | Oil and gas extraction...................... |12/85| 128.8   170.4   222.6    140.1     30.6                     
       14         | Mining and quarrying of non-metallic         |     |                                                             
                  |  minerals, except fuels..................... |12/84| 143.8   145.6   146.3      2.0       .5                     
                  |                                              |     |                                                             
                  |Total manufacturing industries............... |12/84| 134.6   137.8   138.9      4.6       .8                     
       20         | Food and kindred products................... |12/84| 131.6   134.8   134.7      2.0      -.1                     
       21         | Tobacco manufactures........................ |12/84| 409.2   408.7   409.6      4.4       .2                     
       22         | Textile mill products....................... |12/84| 115.8   115.2   114.8      -.9      -.3                     
       23         | Apparel and other finished products made     |     |                                                             
                  |  from fabrics and similar materials......... |12/84| 125.1   125.2   125.5       .2       .2                     
       24         | Lumber and wood products, except furniture.. |12/84| 154.1   155.7   155.3      -.9      -.3                     
       25         | Furniture and fixtures...................... |12/84| 147.0   147.1   147.3      1.1       .1                     
       26         | Paper and allied products................... |12/84| 145.1   145.2   143.9       .7      -.9                     
       27         | Printing, publishing, and allied industries. |12/84| 194.0   196.3   196.5      2.3       .1                     
       28         | Chemicals and allied products............... |12/84| 159.7   162.0   163.7      5.5      1.0                     
       29         | Petroleum refining and related products..... |12/84| 106.7   138.2   146.0     63.7      5.6                     
       30         | Rubber and miscellaneous plastic products... |12/84| 125.8   126.9   128.3      3.0      1.1                     
       31         | Leather and leather products................ |12/84| 142.1   142.8   143.1      2.2       .2                     
       32         | Stone, clay, glass, and concrete products... |12/84| 137.3   137.8   137.6      1.0      -.1                     
       33         | Primary metal industries.................... |12/84| 118.3   117.9   117.8      3.0      -.1                     
       34         | Fabricated metal products, except machinery  |     |                                                             
                  |  and transportation equipment............... |12/84| 132.2   132.5   132.7      1.1       .2                     
       35         | Machinery, except electrical................ |12/84| 116.6   116.3   116.2     -1.3      -.1                     
       36         | Electrical and electronic machinery,         |     |                                                             
                  |  equipment, and supplies.................... |12/84| 105.0   104.0   104.1     -2.3       .1                     
       37         | Transportation equipment.................... |12/84| 138.3   137.5   139.8      1.4      1.7                     
       38         | Measuring and controlling instruments;       |     |                                                             
                  |  photographic, medical, optical goods;       |     |                                                             
                  |  watches, clocks............................ |12/84| 128.8   130.2   129.9       .8      -.2                     
       39         | Miscellaneous manufacturing industries...... |12/85| 133.5   133.8   134.0       .8       .1                     
                  |                                              |     |                                                             
                  |Services industries                           |     |                                                             
       40         | Railroad transportation..................... |12/96| 107.1   107.7   107.7      1.3      0.0                     
       42         | Motor freight transportation and warehousing |06/93| 125.9   126.8   127.3      3.1       .4                     
       43         | United States Postal Service................ |06/89| 155.0   155.0   155.0      6.6    0                         
       44         | Water transportation........................ |12/92| 141.3   140.8   140.9      9.5       .1                     
       45         | Transportation by air....................... |12/92| 159.4   159.8   160.3      2.2       .3                     
       46         | Pipelines, except natural gas............... |12/86| 112.3   111.2   111.2      -.4    0                         
       48         | Communications.............................. |06/01|  97.9    96.9    97.0       .2       .1                     
       54         | Food stores................................. |12/99| 115.6   118.0   115.6      2.9     -2.0                     
       55         | Automotive dealers and gasoline service      |     |                                                             
                  |  stations................................... |12/01|  91.2    84.6    87.6     -4.6      3.5                     
       59         | Miscellaneous retail........................ |06/00| 105.1   106.1   107.1      3.3       .9                     
       80         | Health services............................. |12/94| 121.0   121.5   121.9      3.0       .3                     
       81         | Legal services.............................. |12/96| 123.0   125.2   125.1      3.6      -.1                     
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________                 
1/ Indexes in this table are derived from the net-output-weighted industry price indexes.  Because of differences                          
   in coverage and aggregation methodology, they will generally not match the movements of similarly-titled                       
   indexes which are derived from traditional commodity groupings.                              
2/ The indexes for November 2002 have been recalculated to incorporate late reports and corrections by respondents.                      
   All indexes are subject to revision 4 months after original publication.                                                       
3/ Not available.                                                                                                                    
   
Note: NAICS 2002 replaces the SIC classification system beginning with the release of PPI data for January 2004.                  
See http://www.bls.gov/ppi/ppinaics.htm for details.
Table 5.  Producer price indexes by stage of processing, seasonally adjusted
(1982=100)
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                       |
                                                       |                      Index 1/   
                                                       |_____________________________________________________
               Grouping                                |        |        |        |        |        |        
                                                       |  Oct.  |  Nov.  |  Dec.  |  Jan.  |  Feb.  |  Mar.
                                                       |  2002  |  2002  |  2002  |  2003  |  2003  |  2003  
_______________________________________________________|________|________|________|________|________|________
                                                       |                                                     
      Finished goods...................................|  140.1    139.7    139.4    141.6    143.0    145.1          
        Finished consumer goods........................|  141.0    140.5    140.3    143.0    145.2    147.5
          Finished consumer foods......................|  138.8    139.3    139.9    142.1    142.9    143.0
            Crude......................................|  122.2    120.7    111.5    120.3    117.0    123.6
            Processed..................................|  140.2    140.8    142.3    143.9    145.1    144.6
          Finished consumer goods, excluding foods.....|  141.5    140.7    140.2    143.0    145.7    148.9
            Nondurable goods less foods................|  143.5    142.7    142.6    145.8    150.3    154.0
            Durable goods..............................|  133.5    132.7    131.4    133.5    132.2    134.4 
        Capital equipment..............................|  139.3    139.1    138.4    139.4    138.9    140.0
          Manufacturing industries.....................|  140.0    140.0    139.8    140.0    139.9    140.2
          Nonmanufacturing industries..................|  138.9    138.6    137.7    139.1    138.4    139.9
                                                       |
      Intermediate materials, supplies, and components.|  129.8    129.7    129.5    131.2    133.9    136.6
        Materials and components for manufacturing.....|  127.4    127.7    127.4    128.0    129.6    129.9
          Materials for food manufacturing.............|  123.9    125.4    127.5    129.5    130.3    129.4
          Materials for nondurable manufacturing.......|  133.0    133.0    131.7    133.6    138.2    139.1
          Materials for durable manufacturing..........|  125.9    126.5    126.5    126.6    127.4    127.0
          Components for manufacturing.................|  125.9    126.0    126.0    125.7    125.8    126.1
        Materials and components for construction......|  151.8    151.6    151.5    151.9    152.4    152.3
        Processed fuels and lubricants.................|  102.0    101.0    100.7    107.0    115.4    127.3
          Manufacturing industries ....................|  103.0    103.5    102.4    107.4    113.7    125.9
          Nonmanufacturing industries..................|  101.4     99.4     99.7    106.8    116.5    128.2
        Containers.....................................|  153.3    153.4    153.4    153.6    153.9    154.1
        Supplies.......................................|  139.5    139.6    139.7    140.0    140.6    141.2
          Manufacturing industries.....................|  144.8    144.9    145.0    145.1    145.5    146.4
          Nonmanufacturing industries..................|  137.0    137.1    137.1    137.5    138.1    138.7
            Feeds......................................|  101.8    100.4    100.5    101.0    102.0    103.0
            Other supplies.............................|  141.4    141.6    141.6    142.1    142.6    143.1
                                                       |
      Crude materials for further processing...........|  112.6    116.8    120.5    128.8    135.0    153.0
        Foodstuffs and feedstuffs......................|   99.6    100.7    102.2    107.5    108.3    105.8
        Nonfood materials..............................|  119.1    125.8    131.2    141.5    152.0    185.7   
          Nonfood materials except fuel 2/.............|  107.7    103.4    105.6    114.3    120.9    123.4
            Manufacturing 2/...........................|   98.8     94.8     96.9    105.1    111.3    113.6
            Construction...............................|  183.3    182.6    181.8    180.2    181.1    181.5         
          Crude fuel 3/................................|  126.0    150.6    160.9    172.8    188.8    272.2
            Manufacturing industries...................|  121.3    144.1    153.4    164.6    179.1    256.0
            Nonmanufacturing industries................|  128.7    153.9    164.5    176.7    193.1    278.7
                                                       |
                     Special groupings                 |
                                                       |
      Finished goods, excluding foods..................|  140.2    139.6    139.0    141.3    142.8    145.4
      Intermediate materials less foods and feeds......|  130.5    130.4    130.1    131.8    134.6    137.5  
      Intermediate foods and feeds.....................|  117.2    117.8    119.3    120.8    121.6    121.3
      Crude materials less agricultural products 2/....|  120.5    127.2    132.7    143.5    154.3    189.8 
                                                       |
      Finished energy goods............................|   94.0     92.5     92.4     96.8    104.0    109.9  
      Finished goods less energy.......................|  147.4    147.3    146.9    148.5    148.1    149.0      
      Finished consumer goods less energy..............|  150.8    150.8    150.6    152.3    152.1    152.8
                                                       |
      Finished goods less foods and energy.............|  150.7    150.5    149.7    151.0    150.3    151.4      
      Finished consumer goods less foods and energy....|  158.4    158.2    157.5    158.9    158.1    159.2
      Consumer nondurable goods less foods and energy..|  178.6    178.9    178.8    179.5    179.3    179.1
                                                       |
      Intermediate energy goods........................|  102.0    100.8     99.8    105.9    114.9    126.6
      Intermediate materials less energy...............|  135.5    135.6    135.7    136.2    137.2    137.4
      Intermediate materials less foods and energy.....|  136.7    136.8    136.8    137.2    138.2    138.5
                                                       |
      Crude energy materials 2/........................|  111.3    120.0    127.6    141.6    154.8    202.0
      Crude materials less energy......................|  109.8    111.1    112.0    116.4    118.0    116.6
      Crude nonfood materials less energy 3/...........|  139.6    141.5    141.6    143.0    146.9    148.3
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

  1/  All seasonally adjusted indexes are subject to change up to 5 years after original publication due to
      the recalculation of seasonal factors each January.  The indexes for November 2002 have been recalculated
      to incorporate late reports and corrections by respondents.
  2/  Includes crude petroleum.
  3/  Excludes crude petroleum.
Technical Note


                Brief Explanation of Producer Price Indexes

     The term Producer Price Index (PPI) refers to a family of indexes that
measure the average change over time in the selling prices received by
domestic producers of goods and services.  PPIs measure price change from
the perspective of the seller.  This contrasts with other measures, such as
the Consumer Price Index (CPI); CPIs measure price change from the
purchaser's perspective.  Sellers' and purchasers' prices may differ due to
government subsidies, sales and excise taxes, and distribution costs.

     More than 10,000 PPIs for individual products and groups of products
are released each month.  PPIs are available for the products of virtually
every industry in the mining and manufacturing sectors of the U.S. economy.
New PPIs are gradually being introduced for the products of industries in
the transportation, utilities, trade, finance, and services sectors of the
economy.

     More than 100,000 price quotations per month are organized into three
sets of producer price indexes: (1) stage-of-processing indexes; (2)
commodity indexes; and (3) indexes for the net output of industries and
their products.  The stage-of-processing structure (tables 1, 2, and 5)
organizes products by class of buyer and degree of fabrication.  The
commodity structure (tables 2 and 3) organizes products by similarity of
end-use or material composition.  The entire output of various industries
is sampled to derive price indexes for the net output of industries and
their products (table 4).

     Within the stage-of-processing system, finished goods are commodities
that will not undergo further processing and are ready for sale to the
final demand user, either an individual consumer or business firm.
Consumer foods include unprocessed foods such as eggs and fresh vegetables,
as well as processed foods such as bakery products and meats.  Other
finished consumer goods include durable goods such as automobiles,
household furniture, and appliances; and nondurable goods such as apparel
and home heating oil.  Capital equipment includes producer durable goods
such as heavy motor trucks, tractors, and machine tools.

     The stage-of-processing category for intermediate materials, supplies,
and components consists partly of commodities that have been processed but
require further processing.  Examples of such semifinished goods include
flour, cotton yarn, steel mill products, and lumber.  The intermediate
goods category also encompasses nondurable physically complete items
purchased by business firms as inputs for their operations.  Examples
include diesel fuel, belts and belting, paper boxes, and fertilizers.

     Crude materials for further processing are products entering the
market for the first time that have not been manufactured or fabricated and
that are not sold directly to consumers.  Crude foodstuffs and feedstuffs
include items such as grains and livestock.  Examples of crude nonfood
materials include raw cotton, crude petroleum, coal, hides and skins, and
iron and steel scrap.

     Producer price indexes for the net output of industries and their
products are grouped according to the Standard Industrial Classification
(SIC).  Industry price indexes are compatible with other economic time
series organized by SIC codes, such as data on employment, wages, and
productivity.  Table 4 lists indexes for the net output of major mining and
manufacturing industry groups at the 2-digit level.

     Producer price indexes are based on selling prices reported by
establishments of all sizes selected by probability sampling, with the
probability of selection proportionate to size.  Individual items and
transaction terms from these firms are also chosen by probability
proportionate to size.  BLS strongly encourages cooperating companies to
supply actual transaction prices at the time of shipment to minimize the
use of list prices.  Prices are normally reported by mail questionnaire for
the Tuesday of the week containing the 13th.

    Price data are provided on a voluntary and confidential basis; no one
but sworn BLS employees are allowed access to individual company price
reports.  The Bureau publishes price indexes instead of unit dollar prices.
All producer price indexes are routinely subject to revision once, 4 months
after original publication, to reflect the availability of late reports and
corrections by respondents.

    The BLS periodically updates the PPI sample of survey respondents to
better reflect current conditions when the structure, membership,
technology, or product mix of an industry shifts significantly and to
spread reporting burden among smaller firms.  Results of these resampling
efforts are incorporated into the PPI every January and July.

    As part of an ongoing effort to expand coverage to sectors of the
economy other than mining and manufacturing, an increasing number of
service sector industries have been introduced into the PPI.  The following
list of recently introduced service industries includes the month in which
an article describing the industry's content appeared in the PPI Detailed
Report:

                                           PPI
                                        Detailed
             Industry                                    SIC   Report
                                                               Issue
                                                 
Wireless Telecommunications............................. 4812  July 1999
Telephone Communications, Except Radio Telephone........ 4813  July 1995
Television Broadcasting................................. 4833  July 2002
Grocery Stores.......................................... 5411  July 2000
Meat and Fish (Seafood) Markets......................... 5421  July 2000
Fruit and Vegetable Markets............................. 5431  July 2000
Candy, Nut, and Confectionery Stores.................... 5441  July 2000
Retail Bakeries......................................... 5461  July 2000
Miscellaneous Food Stores............................... 5499  July 2000
New Car Dealers......................................... 5511  July 2000
Gasoline Service Stations............................... 5541  January 2002
Boat Dealers............................................ 5551  January 2002
Recreational Vehicle Dealers............................ 5561  January 2002
Miscellaneous Retail.................................... 59    January 2001
Security Brokers, Dealers, and Investment Bankers....... 6211  January 2001
Investment Advice....................................... 6282  January 2003
Life Insurance Carriers................................. 6311  January 1999
Property and Casualty Insurance......................... 6331  July 1998
Insurance Agencies and Brokerages....................... 6412  January 2003
Operators and Lessors of Nonresidential Buildings....... 6512  January 1996
Real Estate Agents and Managers......................... 6531  January 1996
Prepackaged Software.................................... 7372  January 1998
Data Processing Services................................ 7374  January 2002
Home Health Care Services............................... 8082  January 1997
Legal Services.......................................... 8111  January 1997
Engineering Design, Analysis, and Consulting Services... 8711  January 1997
Architectural Design, Analysis, and Consulting Services. 8712  January 1997
Premiums for Property and Casualty Insurance............ 9331  July 1998

     Weights for most traditional commodity groupings of the PPI, as well
as all indexes (such as stage-of-processing indexes) calculated from
traditional commodity groupings, currently reflect 1992 values of shipments
as reported in the Census of Manufactures and other sources.  From January
1992 through December 1995, PPI weights were derived from 1987 shipment
values.  Industry indexes shown in table 4 are also now calculated with
1992 net output weights.  This periodic update of the value weights used to
calculate the PPI is done to more accurately reflect changes in production
and marketing patterns in the economy.

     Net output values of shipments are used as weights for industry
indexes. Net output values refer to the value of shipments from
establishments in one industry to establishments classified in another
industry.  However, weights for commodity price indexes are based on gross
shipment values, including shipment values between establishments within
the same industry. As a result, broad commodity grouping indexes such as
the all commodities index are affected by the multiple counting of price
change at successive stages of processing, which can lead to exaggerated or
misleading signals about inflation.  Stage-of-processing indexes partially
correct this defect, but industry indexes consistently correct for this at
all levels of aggregation.  Therefore, industry and stage-of-processing
indexes are more appropriate than broad commodity groupings for economic
analysis of general price trends.

     Effective with publication of January 1988 data, many important PPI
series (including stage-of-processing groupings and most commodity groups
and individual items) were placed on a new reference base, 1982=100.  From
1971 through 1987, the standard reference base for most PPI series was
1967=100. Except for rounding differences, the shift to the new reference
base did not alter any changes to previously published percent changes for
affected PPI series. (See "Calculating Index Changes," below.) The new
reference base is not used for indexes with a base later than December
1981, nor for indexes for the net output of industries and their products.

     For further information on the underlying concepts and methodology of
the Producer Price Index, see chapter 14, "Producer Prices," in BLS
Handbook of Methods (April 1997), Bulletin 2490. Reprints are available
from the Bureau of Labor Statistics on request.

                         Calculating Index Changes

     Each index measures price changes from a reference period which equals
100.0 (1982 or some later month). An increase of 5.5 percent from the
reference period in the Finished Goods Price Index, for example, is shown
as 105.5.  This change can also be expressed in dollars as follows:
"Prices received by domestic producers of a systematic sample of finished
goods have risen from $100 in 1982 to $105.50 today." Likewise, a current
index of 90.0 would indicate that prices received by producers of finished
goods today are 10 percent lower than they were in 1982.

    Movements of price indexes from one month to another are usually
expressed as percent changes rather than as changes in index points because
index point changes are affected by the level of the index in relation to
its base period, whereas percent changes are not.  The example below shows
the computation of index point and percent changes.

     Index point change

     Finished Goods Price Index              107.5
     Less previous index                     104.0
     Equals index point change                 3.5

     Index percent change

     Index point change                        3.5
     Divided by the previous index           104.0
     Equals                                  0.034
     Result multiplied by 100          0.034 x 100
     Equals percent change                     3.4



                  Seasonally Adjusted and Unadjusted Data

     Because price data are used for different purposes by different
groups, the Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes seasonally adjusted and
unadjusted changes each month.  Seasonally adjusted data are preferred for
analyzing general price trends in the economy because they eliminate the
effect of changes that normally occur at about the same time and in about
the same magnitude every year--such as price movements resulting from
normal weather patterns, regular production and marketing cycles, model
changeovers, seasonal discounts, and holidays.  For these reasons,
seasonally adjusted data more clearly reveal underlying cyclical trends.

     Unadjusted data are of primary interest to users who need information
that can be related to actual dollar values of transactions.  Individuals
requiring this information include marketing specialists, purchasing
agents, budget and cost analysts, contract specialists, and commodity
traders.  It is the unadjusted data that are generally cited in escalating
long-term contracts such as purchasing agreements or real estate leases.
(See Escalation and Producer Price Indexes:  A Guide for Contracting
Parties, BLS Report 807, September 1991, available on request from BLS.)

     For more information, see (1) "Appendix A: Seasonal Adjustment
Methodology at BLS," in the BLS Handbook of Methods (April 1997), Bulletin
2490 and (2) "Summary of  Changes to the PPI's  Seasonal Adjustment
Methodology" in the January 1995 issue of Producer Price Indexes.