Wholesale price increases accelerated in April as inflation remains sticky
U.S. wholesale prices rose sharply last month, a sign that stubbornly high inflation may persist after three elevated readings in consumer prices to start the year
WASHINGTON — U.S. wholesale prices rose sharply last month, a sign that inflation pressures remain stubbornly high after three elevated readings in consumer prices to start the year.
The Labor Department said Tuesday that its producer price index — which tracks price changes before they reach consumers — climbed 0.5% from March to April, after it dipped 0.1% the previous month. Measured year over year, producer prices rose by 2.2% in April, up from 1.8% in March and the biggest increase in a year.
A measure of underlying inflation, which excludes the volatile food and energy categories, also jumped 0.5% from March to April, and rose 2.4% compared with a year earlier. Economists closely watch core prices because they provide a better signal of where inflation is headed than the overall figure.
Tuesday's unexpectedly high readings may raise concerns on Wall Street, at the Biden White House and for inflation-fighters at the Federal Reserve. Last week Fed officials underscored that they were prepared to leave their key interest rate at 5.3%, the highest in 23 years, as long as needed to bring inflation back to its 2% target. Consumer price inflation has fallen steadily since late 2022 but stalled at an elevated level in the first three months of this year.
At the same time, some wholesale prices fell in ways that suggest consumer inflation could cool a bit this month. A measure of air fares fell 3.8%, and food prices dropped 0.7%. Vegetable costs plunged 18.7%, just between March and April. Hospital prices also declined.
That data, as well as some other
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