U.S. producer prices climb 0.5% in January
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Topics: U.S. PRICES
The Labor Department said it producer price index for final demand climbed 0.5 percent in January.
The bigger than expected increase in producer prices came even though energy prices slid by 0.7 percent in January.
Excluding the pullback in energy prices and a modest increase in food prices, core producer prices still rose by 0.5 percent in January.
A jump in prices for services contributed to the stronger than expected price growth, with prices for final demand services surging up by 0.7 percent in January.
The Labor Department said forty percent of the January increase in prices for services can be traced to margins for apparel, jewelry, footwear, and accessories retailing, which spiked by 10.3 percent. ■