Wholesale prices fell unexpectedly in May, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday.
The producer price index (PPI), which measures pipeline costs for raw, intermediate and finished goods, fell 0.2% for the month. The result was lower than the 0.1% increase estimated by Dow Jones analysts.
On an annual basis, PPI rose 2.2%.
After all four supply-chain stages reported wholesale price increases in April, all four stages reported wholesale price declines in May.
Stage 4 goods inputs, measuring the products purchased by industries primarily producing output sold to final demand, such as RV manufacturers, fell 0.4% in May after a revised 0.4% increase in April. Overall, Stage 4 intermediate demand rose 2.3% in May.
Goods inputs for Stage 3 intermediate demand, measuring suppliers to Stage 4 producers such as RV manufacturers, fell 1.8% in May after a revised 0.2% increase in April. Overall, year-over-year Stage 3 demand rose 0.6%, the first year-over-year increase since February 2023.
Goods inputs for Stage 2 intermediate demand, measuring suppliers to Stage 3 suppliers, fell 2.4% in May after a revised 3.1% increase in April. Overall, Stage 2 intermediate demand rose 1.3% in May, the largest increase since a 5.5% increase in January 2023.
Finally, goods inputs for Stage 1 demand fell 1.6% in May after a 0.5% increase in April. Overall, Stage 1 intermediate demand rose 0.7% in April, the largest year-over-year increase since March 2023.
