Wholesale prices in the United States accelerated at their fastest annual pace on record in March, delivering a fresh sign that persistent inflation continues to plague the U.S. economy.
The Producer Price Index (PPI), which tracks inflation before it hits consumers, rose by an annual 11.2 percent in February, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Wednesday. That’s the highest rate of wholesale price inflation in the history of the data series, which dates back to 2010.
The sky-high PPI reading is likely to amplify concerns about inflation more broadly, as higher wholesale prices tend to get passed along to consumers.
Inflation in the United States rose at a blistering 8.5 percent in the year through March—the fastest pace in 41 years—the most recent government data on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed. Some economists say the mismatch between the CPI number and the PPI figure means consumers should brace for higher prices.
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