Producer Price Index Rises 0.7% in March

he Labor Department said Tuesday its producer price index rose 0.7% in March, and prices excluding food and energy rose just 0.1%.

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 could also hurt the economy.

Analysts had predicted a 0.6% gain, Bloomberg reported. The PPI rose 0.4% in February.

Labor said energy prices surged 3.3% in March, led by a 15.7% rise in heating oil prices and a 5.3% jump in gasoline prices.

Prices for capital equipment rose 0.3% after falling 0.2% in February, Labor said. Automobile prices fell 0.2% following a decrease of 0.9% the previous month.

Food prices rose 0.3% following a 0.8% rise.