Producer Price Index Falls 0.8%

Prices paid to U.S. producers fell 0.8% in November, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The producer price index drop followed a 0.2% drop in October. The so-called core PPI, which excludes food and energy, increased 0.1%, after falling 0.2% the previous month, Labor said.

Economists had forecast a 0.5% decrease in the PPI, and a core rate increase of 0.1%, Bloomberg reported.

An increase in the PPI could indicate strong demand for goods, which would mean more shipments for trucking companies. However, if inflation begins to accelerate too quickly, it also could hurt the economy.