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Producer Price Index declined 0.5% in December 2022, ex Fd & Engy up 0.1%
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The Producer Price Index for final demand declined 0.5 percent in December, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Final demand prices advanced 0.2 percent in November and 0.4 percent in October. (See table A.) On an unadjusted basis, the index for final demand increased 6.2 percent in 2022 after rising 10.0 percent in 2021.
In December, the decrease in the final demand index can be attributed to a 1.6-percent decline in prices for final demand goods. In contrast, the index for final demand services rose 0.1 percent.
Prices for final demand less foods, energy, and trade services edged up 0.1 percent in December after increasing 0.3 percent in November. The index for final demand less foods, energy, and trade services advanced 4.6 percent in 2022 following a 7.0-percent rise in 2021.
Final Demand
Final demand goods: Prices for final demand goods moved down 1.6 percent in December, the largest decrease since falling 1.8 percent in July. Leading the December decline, the index for final demand energy dropped 7.9 percent. Prices for final demand foods decreased 1.2 percent. Conversely, the index for final demand goods less foods and energy advanced 0.2 percent.
Product detail: Nearly half of the December decrease in the index for final demand goods can be traced to a 13.4-percent decline in prices for gasoline. The indexes for diesel fuel; jet fuel; fresh and dry vegetables; canned, cooked, smoked, or prepared poultry; and basic organic chemicals also fell. In contrast, prices for carbon steel scrap increased 8.3 percent. The indexes for chicken eggs and for electric power also moved higher.
Final demand services: Prices for final demand services edged up 0.1 percent in December after rising 0.2 percent in November. The December increase can be traced to margins for final demand trade services, which advanced 0.3 percent. (Trade indexes measure changes in margins received by wholesalers and retailers.) Conversely, the index for final demand transportation and warehousing services fell 0.2 percent, while prices for final demand services less trade, transportation, and warehousing were unchanged.
Product detail: A major factor in the December increase in prices for final demand services was a 17.6-percent jump in margins for fuels and lubricants retailing. The indexes for deposit services (partial), airline passenger services, inpatient care, and professional and commercial equipment wholesaling also moved higher. In contrast, prices for truck transportation of freight decreased 1.7 percent. The indexes for residential real estate loans (partial), machinery and vehicle wholesaling, and guestroom rental also fell.
Posted: January 18, 2023 Wednesday 08:30 AM