Producer Prices Up in May

Washington, DC, June 13, 2006–Producer prices increased 0.2% in May as energy prices moderated, but core prices inched higher amid signs that inflationary pressures are growing.

The Labor Department said Tuesday prices for finished goods rose 0.2%, while the core PPI–which excludes food and energy prices–rose 0.3%.

The results were close to expectations of economists. In the past year, the PPI is up 4.5%, the fastest year-over-year gain since January.

The core PPI is up 1.5% in the past year. While prices for finished goods were relatively tame, prices for goods under production jumped.

Intermediate goods prices increased 1.1%, the biggest gain since October. Crude goods prices increased 2%, also the largest since October.