Wholesale prices in April rose 1.4% seasonally adjusted for the month, significantly higher than the 0.5% Dow Jones consensus forecast and the revised 0.7% increase in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday.
This marked the biggest monthly increase since March 2022. Yearly, the index rose by 6%, marking the largest increase since December 2022.
Excluding food and energy, core PPI increased by 1%, surpassing the 0.4% estimate. Excluding food, energy, and trade services, PPI rose 0.6%.
For PPI, about three-quarters of the increase in goods prices came from a 7.8% rise in final demand energy.
More than 40% of this increase was caused by a 15.6% rise in gasoline prices, which surged past $4 a gallon during a month of heightened tensions from the Iran conflict, impacting the overall energy market.
The services index rose 1.2%, marking its largest monthly increase since March 2022. Two-thirds of this rise was due to a 2.7% increase in trade services, indicating that tariff costs might be beginning to have a bigger impact on prices. The increase was also supported by a 3.5% boost in margins for machinery and equipment wholesaling.
By CEO NA Editorial Staff
