The wholesale price index rose in January, suggesting that inflationary pressures in the supply chain are still ongoing and likely to make the Federal Reserve more cautious about cutting interest rates.
The producer price index (PPI), which measures the prices producers receive for their goods and services, rose 0.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis, beating the Dow Jones estimate of 0.3%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Thursday.
Excluding food and energy, the core PPI rose 0.3%, in line with forecasts.
The report came a day after the BLS reported that the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.5% in the month, bringing the annual inflation rate to 3%, far from the Federal Reserve’s long-term target of 2%.
The combination of the two reports is likely to delay expectations for a rate cut until the second half of this year, although inflation data can be volatile and the outlook could change depending on developments in the coming months.
The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was down 0.12% at 107.68.
