Connect with us

Economics

Wholesale inflation rose 0.6% in February

Published

on

Wholesale inflation rose 0.6% in February, more than expected

Wholesale prices accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace in February, another reminder that inflation remains a troublesome issue for the U.S. economy.

The producer price index, which measures pipeline costs for raw, intermediate and finished goods, jumped 0.6% on the month, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday. That was higher than the 0.3% forecast from Dow Jones and comes after a 0.3% increase in January.

Excluding food and energy, the core PPI accelerated by 0.3%, compared with the estimate for a 0.2% increase. Another measure that also excludes trade services rose 0.4%, compared with the 0.6% gain in January, and was above the estimate for a 0.2% advance.

On a year-over-year basis, the headline index increased 1.6%, the biggest move since September 2023.

The data contributed to a decline on Wall Street, with the major U.S. stock falling slightly. Treasury yields climbed on the back of the report.

A busy morning for economic data also showed that retail sales rebounded, up 0.6% on the month, according to Commerce Department data that is adjusted seasonally but not for inflation. The increase helped reverse a downwardly revised 1.1% slump in January, but was still below the estimate for a 0.8% rise.

Also, initial filings for unemployment insurance nudged lower to 209,000 last week, a decrease of 1,000 and below the estimate for 218,000, the Labor Department reported. Continuing claims edged higher to 1.81 million, though the previous week’s count was revised sharply lower.

The market focused on the PPI release, which comes two days after the consumer price index, which measures what consumers pay in the marketplace, showed that inflation was slightly higher than anticipated on a year-over-year basis.

The PPI is considered a leading indicator for inflation as it indicates costs early in the supply chain.

The BLS reported that about two-thirds of the rise in the headline PPI came from a 1.2% surge in goods prices, the biggest increase since August 2023. As with the CPI, the acceleration was traced to energy prices, with saw a 4.4% increase in the final demand measure. Gasoline prices jumped 6.8% at the wholesale level.

Services costs increased 0.3%, boosted by a 3.8% surge in traveler accommodation services.

Retail shows rebound

On the retail sales side, the data indicated that consumers kept ahead of CPI inflation, which increased 0.4% on the month, though sales were still sluggish.

Excluding auto, retail sales rose 0.3%, one-tenth of a percentage point below expectations. Motor vehicle parts and dealers saw an increase of 1.6%, second only to the 2.2% gain for building material and garden centers on the month.

Despite slumping prices, gasoline stations reported an increase of 0.9%. Electronics and appliance sales rose 1.5% while miscellaneous store sales climbed 0.6% and restaurants and bars were up 0.4%.

Retail sales posted a 1.5% gain on a year-over-year basis, below the 3.2% increase in the CPI.

Inflation-related data is being watched closely on Wall Street, ahead of the Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting starting next Tuesday.

While the central bank is almost certain to hold its benchmark interest rate in place, markets will be looking for clues about the future of monetary policy. Futures pricing is pointing toward the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee to start cutting interest rates in June, with three quarter-percentage point decreases expected this year.

At the meeting, policymakers will update their outlooks for rates, economic growth, inflation and unemployment.

Don’t miss these stories from CNBC PRO:

Economics

Why stricter voting laws no longer help Republicans

Published

on

“The Republicans should pray for rain”—the title of a paper published by a trio of political scientists in 2007—has been an axiom of American elections for years. The logic was straightforward: each inch of election-day showers, the study found, dampened turnout by 1%. Lower turnout gave Republicans an edge because the party’s affluent electorate had the resources to vote even when it was inconvenient. Their opponents, less so.

Continue Reading

Economics

Why the president must not be lexicographer-in-chief

Published

on

Who decides what legal terms mean? If it is Donald Trump, God help America

Continue Reading

Economics

Inflation rate slipped to 2.1% in April, lower than expected, Fed’s preferred gauge shows

Published

on

Inflation rate slipped to 2.1% in April, lower than expected, Fed’s preferred gauge shows

Inflation barely budged in April as tariffs President Donald Trump implemented in the early part of the month had yet to show up in consumer prices, the Commerce Department reported Friday.

The personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s key inflation measure, increased just 0.1% for the month, putting the annual inflation rate at 2.1%. The monthly reading was in line with the Dow Jones consensus forecast while the annual level was 0.1 percentage point lower.

Excluding food and energy, the core reading that tends to get even greater focus from Fed policymakers showed readings of 0.1% and 2.5%, against respective estimates of 0.1% and 2.6%.

Consumer spending, though, slowed sharply for the month, posting just a 0.2% increase, in line with the consensus but slower than the 0.7% rate in March. A more cautious consumer mood also was reflected in the personal savings rate, which jumped to 4.9%, up from 0.6 percentage point in March to the highest level in nearly a year.

Personal income surged 0.8%, a slight increase from the prior month but well ahead of the forecast for 0.3%.

Markets showed little reaction to the news, with stock futures continuing to point lower and Treasury yields mixed.

People shop at a grocery store in Brooklyn on May 13, 2025 in New York City.

Spencer Platt | Getty Images

Trump has been pushing the Fed to lower its key interest rate as inflation has continued to gravitate back to the central bank’s 2% target. However, policymakers have been hesitant to move as they await the longer-term impacts of the president’s trade policy.

On Thursday, Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell held their first face-to-face meeting since the president started his second term. However, a Fed statement indicated the future path of monetary policy was not discussed and stressed that decisions would be made free of political considerations.

Trump slapped across-the-board 10% duties on all U.S. imports, part of an effort to even out a trading landscape in which the U.S. ran a record $140.5 billion deficit in March. In addition to the general tariffs, Trump launched selective reciprocal tariffs much higher than the 10% general charge.

Since then, though, Trump has backed off the more severe tariffs in favor of a 90-day negotiating period with the affected countries. Earlier this week, an international court struck down the tariffs, saying Trump exceeded his authority and didn’t prove that national security was threatened by the trade issues.

Then in the latest installment of the drama, an appeals court allowed a White House effort for a temporary stay of the order from the U.S. Court of International Trade.

Economists worry that tariffs could spark another round of inflation, though the historical record shows that their impact is often minimal.

At their policy meeting earlier this month, Fed officials also expressed worry about potential tariff inflation, particularly at a time when concerns are rising about the labor market. Higher prices and slower economic growth can yield stagflation, a phenomenon the U.S. hasn’t seen since the early 1980s.

Continue Reading

Trending