The preliminary value for the June CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; most recent available) dipped slightly compared to the previous month’s value, and although the decrease was small, it ends a string of eight straight months of increasing values. All four of the major subindices (Equipment, Construction Labor, Buildings and Engineering & Supervision) saw small decreases from their previous month’s values. The preliminary overall monthly CEPCI value for June 2017 stands at 4.9% higher than the corresponding value from June 2016. Meanwhile, the latest Current Business Indicators (CBI) saw the CPI Output Index rise by a small margin in July, while the CPI value of output fell slightly in June. Producer prices for industrial chemicals fell in July.
CE Plant Cost Index updates: June (prelim.) and May (final)
| By Scott Jenkins