Partly reflecting an increase in prices for services, the Labor Department released a report on Friday showing U.S. producer prices climbed by slightly more than expected in the month of July.
The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand rose by 0.3 percent in July following a revised unchanged reading in June.
Economists had expected producer prices to inch up by 0.2 percent compared to the 0.1 percent uptick originally reported for the previous month.
The report also showed the annual rate of producer price growth reaccelerated to 0.8 percent in July after slowing to just 0.2 percent in June. The rate of growth was expected to accelerate to 0.7 percent.
The slightly bigger than expected monthly increase in producer prices was led by a 0.5 percent advance in prices for services, the largest since August 2022.
Prices for trade services climbed by 0.7 percent, prices for transportation and warehousing services rose by 0.5 percent and prices for other services edged up by 0.3 percent.
Meanwhile, prices for goods inched up by 0.1 percent during the month, as prices for food climbed by 0.5 percent but prices for energy were unchanged.
Excluding prices for food, energy, and trade services, core producer prices rose by 0.2 percent in July following a 0.1 percent uptick in June.
The Labor Department said the annual rate of growth by core producer prices was unchanged from the previous month at 2.7 percent.
A separate report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed U.S. consumer prices increased in line with economist estimates in the month of July.
The Labor Department said its consumer price index rose by 0.2 percent in July, matching the uptick seen in June as well as expectations.
The report also said the annual rate of growth by consumer prices accelerated to 3.2 percent in July from 3.0 percent in June. Economists had expected the pace of price growth to accelerate to 3.3 percent.
Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices also rose by 0.2 percent for the second straight month in July, in line with estimates.
Meanwhile, the annual rate of growth by core consumer prices slowed to 4.7 percent in July from 4.8 percent in June. The rate of growth was expected to be unchanged.
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