Wholesale inflation dead in the water, PPI shows

marketwatch.com ^ | Aug 9, 2019 | Jeffry Bartash

[BenLurkin]

The wholesale cost of U.S. goods and services rose modestly in July, but inflation more broadly appeared dead in the water and showed little sign it’s about to speed up.

The producer price index increased 0.2% last month, matching the forecast of economists polled by ...

Yet the pace of wholesale inflation over the past year was flat 1.7%. And more closely followed measure that strips out volatile food, energy and trade-margin costs fell for the first time in almost four years. The so-called core PPI dipped 0.1%.

Wholesale prices rose 0.4% for goods, largely reflecting an increase in gasoline prices in July during the height of the summer driving season. Energy prices are still 4.4% lower now compared to a year ago, however.

Wholesale prices of food moved up 0.2%.

The cost of services, meanwhile, declined 0.1% in July to break a string of five straight increases. A big drop in the cost of guestroom rentals played a major role in the decline.

There doesn’t appear to be much inflation in the pipeline, either. The cost of partly finished goods are down 2% over the past 12 months and raw-material prices are 10% lower.

[central_va]

You are Free Traitor™. Trade and tariffs are not “side” issues. It affects 20 million manufacturing and blue collar workers that watch the issue keenly. They don’t care about some farmer and his government check. They are more important as voters than tractor monkeys. 99% of the USA is NOT involved in farming in any way. Even in Iowa 90%+ are not involved in farming at all.

[Wuli]

“You are Free Traitor™. Trade and tariffs are not “side” issues.”

You are an idiot.

YOUR issue about “farm subsidies” IS the side issue and YOU brought it up.

You keep changing the argument and pretending I make points that YOU are in fact making.

Now just go away. Go pick an argument somewhere else.