Input Stories

The Producer Price Index for final demand (also known as wholesale prices) decreased 0.4% over the month in March, after inching up 0.1% in February. Over the year, producer prices moved up 2.7%, coming in lower than expectations. Prices for final demand excluding foods, energy and trade services ticked up 0.1% over the month in March, after increasing 0.4% in each of the previous three months. Prices for these goods advanced 3.4% from March 2024.

In March, prices for final demand services declined 0.2%, while prices for final demand goods dropped 0.9%. A 1.3% decrease in prices for machinery and vehicle wholesaling was a prominent factor in the March decline in the final demand services index. Meanwhile, two-thirds of the reduction in the final demand goods index can be attributed to an 11.1% drop in gasoline prices. On the other hand, prices for steel mill products increased 7.1% over the month in March.

Processed goods for intermediate demand stayed the same in March, following a 0.4% jump in February. A 0.9% increase in the index for processed materials less foods and energy offset price decreases for processed energy goods and processed foods and feeds, which fell 3.2% and 0.5%, respectively. Over the year, the index rose 0.9%, up from the 0.4% increase in February.

Meanwhile, prices for unprocessed goods for intermediate demand fell 4.1% in March, the largest decrease since May 2023 after three consecutive monthly increases. Nearly three-fourths of the March decline can be attributed to a 7.5% drop in the prices for unprocessed foodstuffs and feedstuffs. Additionally, the unprocessed energy materials index decreased 3.3%. Despite the monthly declines, prices for unprocessed goods for intermediate demand surged 7.1% from March 2024.