The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Thursday that wholesale inflation continued to fall in March.
The producer price index (PPI), a measure of the prices that companies get for finished goods in the marketplace, fell 0.5% for the month after a 0.1% decline in February, BLS reported. Analysts’ estimates expected the PPI to be flat from February.
Excluding food and energy, the core wholesale prices reading shed 0.1% month over month, much better than the 0.2% increase expected by economists polled by Dow Jones.
Three of the four supply-chain stages measured by the PPI showed declining prices in March from the previous month. Two stages showed the largest year-over-year declines since 2020.
Goods inputs for Stage 4 intermediate demand, measuring the products purchased by industries primarily producing output sold to final demand, such as RV manufacturers, fell 0.5% in March after falling 0.1% in February. Year-over-year Stage 3 demand rose 3.2%, down from a 4.8% increase in February.
Goods inputs for Stage 3 intermediate demand, measuring suppliers to Stage 4 producers such as RV manufacturers, fell 1.3% in March after a revised 0.6% decline in February.
Overall, year-over-year Stage 3 demand decreased 1.7%. The decline was the largest year-over-year decline since a 2.4% decrease in September 2020.
Goods inputs for Stage 2 intermediate demand, measuring suppliers to Stage 3 suppliers, plummeted 5.2% in March after a revised 4.7% decline in February. Goods inputs for Stage 2 demand have declined month-over-month six of the past seven months.
Overall, Stage 2 intermediate demand dropped 4% year-over-year, the largest year-over-year decline since a 5.3% decrease in July 2020.
Finally, goods inputs for Stage 1 demand fell 1.2% in March after a 0.6% decrease in February. Overall, demand rose 0.4% year-over-year after a 3.6% increase in February.
