17-Mar-2025 08:09

With an increase in prices for goods offset by a decrease in prices for services, the Labor Department released a report on Thursday showing producer prices in the U.S. were unexpectedly flat in the month of February.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand was unchanged in February after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.6 percent in January.

The report also said the annual rate of growth by producer prices slowed to 3.2 percent in February from an upwardly revised 3.7 percent in January.

The annual rate of producer price growth was expected to dip to 3.3 percent from the 3.5 percent originally reported for the previous month.

Producer prices came in unchanged in February, as a 0.3 percent increase by prices for goods was offset by a 0.2 percent dip by prices for services.

Food prices led the monthly increase in prices for goods, jumping by 1.7 percent as prices for chicken eggs skyrocketed by 53.6 percent.

Meanwhile, the decrease by prices for services came amid a sharp pullback by prices for trade services, which slumped by 1.0 percent.

Excluding prices for food, energy and trade services, core producer prices crept up by 0.2 percent in February after rising by 0.3 percent in January.

The annual rate of growth by core producer prices slowed to 3.3 percent in February from 3.4 percent in the previous month.

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