The preliminary value for the March CE Plant Cost Index (CEPCI; the most recent available) rose compared to the previous month’s value, continuing a string of 6 months of increasing values. All four of the major subindices — Equipment, Construction Labor, Buildings and Engineering & Supervision — increased in March compared to their respective February values. The preliminary overallmonthly CEPCI value for March 2017 stands at 5.0% higher than the corresponding value from March 2016. Meanwhile, the latest Current Business Indicators (CBI) saw a small rise in the CPI Output Index for April, while the March value for the CPI Value of Output declined slightly. The April Productivity Index decrease by a small margin.
Current economic trends: CEPCI March Preliminary numbers
| By Scott Jenkins