On Tuesday, the US Department of Labor released the Producer Price Index (PPI) for February. The headline PPI, which includes food and energy, rose 4.6% in February year-on-year, slowing from 5.7% in January.
However, on a month-on-month basis, the headline PPI fell 0.1% in February, which beat analysts’ expectations for a 0.3% gain after gaining 0.3% in January. Meanwhile, the core PPI, which excludes food and energy, rose 4.4% in February year-on-year, corresponding to the month of January.
On a month-on-month basis, the core PPI rose 0.2% in February, which is slower than the 0.5% increase seen in January. The slowdown in the PPI growth rate in February suggests that inflationary pressures may be easing slightly, which could provide some relief to consumers who have been hit hard by higher prices in recent months.