U.S. Producer Price Growth Slightly Exceeds Estimates In October

A report released by the Labor Department on Tuesday showed U.S. producer prices increased by slightly more than anticipated in the month of October.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand advanced by 0.6 percent in October after climbing by 0.5 percent in September. Economists had expected another 0.5 percent increase.

The slightly stronger than expected producer price growth was partly due to a continued surge in energy prices, which spiked by 4.8 percent in October after jumping by 2.8 percent in September.

Core producer prices, which exclude prices for food, energy, and trade services, rose by 0.4 percent in October after inching up by 0.1 percent in September. Core prices were expected to edge up by 0.2 percent.

The report showed prices for transportation and warehousing services shot up by 1.7 percent in October after plunging by 4.0 percent in September.

Compared to the same month a year ago, producer prices in October were up by 8.6 percent, unchanged from the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report said the annual rate of growth in core producer prices accelerated to 6.2 percent from 5.9 percent.

“With supply dynamics showing few signs of abating before year end, we look for PPI inflation to peak later in Q4 before price pressures gradually moderate across 2022,” said Mahir Rasheed, U.S. Economist at Oxford Economics.

The Labor Department is scheduled to release a separate report on consumer price inflation in the month of October on Wednesday.

Consumer prices are expected to climb by 0.5 percent in October after increasing by 0.4 percent in September, while core consumer prices are expected to rise by 0.3 percent after edging up by 0.2 percent.

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