On Jan. 1, the U.S. producer price index (PPI) rose 0.5% from the previous month, surpassing market expectations.
The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics said on the 27th (local time) that the PPI in January rose 0.5% from the previous month. That exceeded the market forecast of 0.3%.
The year-over-year increase was 2.9%, also above the market expectation of 2.6%. A 0.8% month-over-month rise in final-demand services prices led the overall index higher.
The PPI is reflected in final consumer goods prices with a lag and is regarded as a leading indicator of consumer inflation. It is also reflected in the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which the Federal Reserve uses as a key inflation gauge.
Meanwhile, the core producer price index, which excludes volatile items such as energy and food, rose 0.3% from the prior month, below the market forecast of 0.4%.