Meat is seen on sale at a supermarket in Alhambra, California, on May 12, 2026.
Frederick J. Brown | AFP | Getty Images
Wholesale prices in April recorded the highest annual rise in more than three years, suggesting inflation will worsen as pipeline costs soar.
The producer price index rose a seasonally adjusted 1.4% for the month, well above the Dow Jones consensus estimate for a 0.5% rise and an upwardly revised 0.7% rise in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Wednesday. This was the largest monthly increase since March 2022.
On an annual basis, the index rose 6%, the largest increase since December 2022.
Core PPI, which excludes food and energy, accelerated by 1% compared to the expected 0.4%. PPI, which excludes food, energy and trade services, rose 0.6%.
Energy was at the root of the unexpectedly large rise in producer prices, similar to the rise in consumer prices that the BLS reported on Tuesday.
For PPI, about three-quarters of the increase in goods prices is due to a 7.8% increase in final energy demand, according to the BLS. More than 40% of that was due to a 15.6% jump in gasoline prices in a month that saw prices soar well above $4 a gallon as pressure from the Iran war hit the broader energy complex.
Much of the inflationary movement has been attributed to the war and President Donald Trump’s tariffs introduced a year ago, but PPI data shows price pressures were widespread.
The services index rose 1.2%, the largest monthly increase since March 2022. Two-thirds of the increase was due to a 2.7% rise in trade services, indicating that tariff costs may be starting to have a significant impact on prices. The move was also supported by a 3.5% rise in machinery and equipment wholesale margins.
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