Wholesale prices rise at fastest pace since 2022 as fuel costs climb
An inflation report a day earlier showed accelerating consumer prices.
Wholesale prices surged in September at their fastest pace since 2022 as fuel costs soared, federal government data on Thursday showed. The figure came in much higher than economists expected.
Producer prices rose 1.3% on a monthly basis in September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said, accelerating at a clip more than twice as fast as the increase recorded in August.
The jump in wholesale prices amounted to the largest in a single month since March 2022, when suppliers weathered fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since the outbreak of the Iran war hiked fuel costs earlier this year, the monthly wholesale-price measure has drawn close attention as an indicator of a potential pass through to consumer prices.
The wholesale price index for energy leapt more than 10% in September from August, indicating a significant increase in energy costs faced by manufacturers and other producers.
Diesel prices, which feed into supply costs for groceries and just about every other product bought in stores, stand at $6.31 a gallon, according to AAA. That figure amounts to an increase of about 66% since the Iran war began in February.
Overall, wholesale prices climbed 6.3% over the year ending in September, which marked the largest one-year jump in the index since December 2022, the BLS said.
The fresh data on producer prices arrived a day after a report on consumer prices showed inflation had accelerated last month. The reports come as affordability ranks among voters' top concerns ahead of early November's midterm elections.
As with wholesale prices, the jump in prices paid by consumers owed in large part to a surge in fuel costs. A rise in gasoline prices accounted for more than half of the overall consumer price increase in September, according to the BLS.
Shelter prices -- which include home-owner payments and rental charges -- also rose in September.
Overall consumer prices rose 3.7% in September compared to a year earlier, the BLS noted, marking an uptick from an annual inflation rate of 3.4% in the prior month.
Food prices proved stable, however. The consumer price of food stayed flat in September from August.
That figure, which includes prices for groceries and food eaten away from home, suggests some restaurants and stores resisted passing along higher supply costs to shoppers.
Related Topics
Popular Reads
ABC News Live