US wholesale prices slow sharply

WASHINGTON, Aug 11 (AFP): A steep plunge in energy costs last month caused US wholesale prices to cool sharply in July, according to government data Thursday, a welcome sign that more relief is on the way for American families plagued by high inflation.
The producer price index (PPI) fell 0.5 per cent compared to June, on a 9 per cent drop in energy prices, the Labor Department reported.
That contrasted sharply with the modest rise economists had expected, and was the biggest decline since February 2015, other than the retreat seen in the early months of the pandemic in 2020.
The slowdown caused the PPI for the latest 12 months to pull back sharply from the 11.8 pace in June to a still-high 9.8 per cent, the report said.
The welcome news about easing price pressures in the pipeline came a day after data showing consumer price inflation also slowed last month, pulling back from a 40-year high that had left many families struggling to make ends meet.
But falling oil prices in recent weeks have caused gas prices at the pump to fall to $3.99, the first time the national average has been below $4 in weeks and down from the record of $5.02 hit in mid-June.
Receding inflation pressures have raised hopes in financial markets that the Federal Reserve will be able to raise borrowing costs less aggressively, after two consecutive three-quarter point rate hikes.
However economists and Fed officials have cautioned against that view.