An indicator of wholesale prices unexpectedly fell in May, providing further evidence that inflation is easing.
this producer price indexThe U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday that a measure of the prices producers receive for goods and services on the open market fell 0.2% this month. That reversed April’s 0.5% gain, compared with the Dow Jones forecast of 0.1% growth.
Excluding food, energy and trade services, PPI remained unchanged, while expectations were for a 0.3% growth.
On an annual basis, the producer price for all projects increased by 2.2%.
After the report was released, stock market futures rose slightly and Treasury yields fell.
The news comes a day after the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the consumer price index was unchanged for the month.
From a wholesale perspective, PPI was weighed down by a 0.8% fall in final demand commodity prices, the largest decline since October 2023. Food prices fell 0.1%.
On the services side, fuel and lubricants retail margins soared 12.2%, but this was partially offset by a 4.3% plunge in air passenger services prices.
The day before, the Federal Reserve noted “modest further progress” in bringing inflation back to its 2% target, but not enough for the central bank to start lowering interest rates. The Federal Reserve has maintained its benchmark borrowing rate at a target range of 5.25%-5.5% since July 2023, waiting for more evidence that inflation is returning to the central bank’s 2% target.
In other economic news Thursday, the Labor Department reported Applying for Unemployment Insurance for the First Time The number jumped to 242,000 in the week ending June 8. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for 225,000 people.
Continuing claims, which trailed one week, totaled 1.82 million, an increase of 30,000 from the previous week.
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