The wholesale price index rose more than expected in June as Wall Street waited to see when the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates.
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday that the producer price index rose 0.2% last month. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had expected it to rise 0.1%. The producer price index has risen 2.6% over the past year.
The PPI is a measure of the prices producers can get for goods and services on the open market. In June, rising prices for services offset falling prices for goods.
The figure was up from May’s figure, which was also revised upwards. Friday’s report showed the index was unchanged in May, after initially reporting a 0.2% decline.
The better-than-expected PPI reading is at odds with recent data showing falling inflation, but economists and investors tend to give more weight to consumer-focused inflation figures.
Friday’s announcement came after the Consumer Price Index for June was released on Thursday, which came in lower than expected. The CPI showed headline inflation fell month over month and is now at 3% year-on-year.
The central bank’s next policy meeting is at the end of July and is widely expected to keep interest rates on hold, with traders betting that the September meeting is the most likely time for a first rate cut.
The Fed’s preferred inflation measure is the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index. June PCE data is due to be released on July 26th.
