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Wholesale Prices Increase on Fuel
Wholesale prices in the U.S. rose in June, reflecting a jump in energy costs that is now abating.
The 0.4% increase in the producer price index followed a 0.2% drop in May, the Labor Department reported.
The median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey of 69 economists called for an advance of 0.2%. Fuel costs climbed 2.1%, the biggest gain since February 2013.
Compared with a year earlier, companies paid 1.9% more for goods and services, matching the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg and down from a 2 % year-over-year increase in May.
The core measure, which strips out volatile food and fuel costs, climbed 0.2%, matching the survey median. Those costs fell 0.1% in May.
The core index increased 1.8% in the 12 months ended June following a 2% gain for the year ended May.
Estimates for the PPI index in the Bloomberg survey of economists ranged from unchanged to a 0.8% gain.
The wholesale prices report was expanded this year to include 75% of all U.S. goods and services, up from about a third for the old metric, which tallied the costs of goods alone. The index now includes prices received for services, government purchases, trade and construction.
