{"id":3337,"date":"2026-01-30T15:36:33","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T15:36:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/?p=3337"},"modified":"2026-01-30T15:36:33","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T15:36:33","slug":"us-producer-prices-jump-more-than-expected-in-december-as-services-costs-surge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/?p=3337","title":{"rendered":"US producer prices jump more than expected in December as services costs surge"},"content":{"rendered":"
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US producer prices climbed more than anticipated in December, driven primarily by a rise in service prices. <\/p>\n

The Producer Price Index for final demand rose 0.5% month-on-month, accelerating from a 0.2% increase in November and surpassing economists\u2019 expectations of a similar rise. <\/p>\n

On an annual basis, producer prices increased 3%, unchanged from the previous month.<\/p>\n

Services lead the price increase<\/h2>\n

The stronger-than-expected increase in producer prices was driven largely by services, which rose 0.7% in December. <\/p>\n

Trade services played a particularly prominent role, with margins for wholesalers and retailers climbing 1.7%, accounting for roughly two-thirds of the increase in services prices.<\/p>\n

More than 40% of the rise in final demand services was linked to a sharp jump in margins for machinery and equipment wholesaling, highlighting how supply chain adjustments and tariff-related costs are filtering through the economy.<\/p>\n

Goods prices show mixed trends<\/h2>\n

Prices for final demand goods were flat in December after rising in November, reflecting divergent movements across categories. <\/p>\n

Gains in goods excluding food and energy offset declines in energy and food prices.<\/p>\n

Nonferrous metals recorded a notable increase, while prices also rose for residential natural gas, motor vehicles, soft drinks, and aircraft and related equipment. <\/p>\n

At the same time, diesel fuel posted a steep decline, with gasoline, jet fuel, beef and veal, and iron and steel scrap also moving lower.<\/p>\n

The mixed pattern underscores how inflationary pressures remain uneven, with certain sectors absorbing cost increases while others experience falling prices.<\/p>\n

Tariffs and policy outlook in focus<\/h2>\n

Businesses had previously absorbed part of the impact of sweeping import tariffs, helping to contain inflation. <\/p>\n

The latest data, however, suggest that firms are increasingly passing on these costs, raising the risk of broader price pressures.<\/p>\n

The Federal Reserve recently kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged, with policymakers continuing to weigh the impact of tariffs on inflation. <\/p>\n

Fed Chair Jerome Powell has noted that tariff-driven inflation could peak later in the year, implying that price pressures may intensify before easing.<\/p>\n

Producer price data are closely watched by economists because several components feed into the personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve\u2019s preferred measure of inflation. <\/p>\n

The December PCE figures, delayed by earlier disruptions, are scheduled for release later this month, adding uncertainty to the near-term inflation outlook.<\/p>\n

Data delays add to uncertainty<\/h2>\n

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has now caught up on producer and consumer price reports that were delayed during the recent federal government shutdown. <\/p>\n

However, lawmakers are again racing to avert another shutdown, which could disrupt upcoming data releases, including the next employment report.<\/p>\n

As tariff effects begin to surface more clearly in producer prices, investors and policymakers alike are bracing for a potentially more volatile inflation trajectory in the months ahead.<\/p>\n

The post US producer prices jump more than expected in December as services costs surge<\/a> appeared first on Invezz<\/a><\/p>\n

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US producer prices climbed more than anticipated in December, driven primarily by a rise in service prices. The Producer Price Index for final demand rose 0.5% month-on-month, accelerating from a 0.2% increase in November and surpassing economists\u2019 expectations of a similar rise. On an annual basis, producer prices increased 3%, unchanged from the previous month.Services…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3338,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stock"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3337"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3337\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tradertideinsights.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}