Producer prices surge 8.3% annually, fifth straight record gain

Producer prices rose 8.3% year over year

Producer prices climbed at the fastest annual pace on record for the fifth consecutive month in August as supply-chain disruptions and materials shortages continued to put upward pressure on costs. 

The producer price index for final demand jumped 8.3% year over year, according to the Labor Department. The reading was hotter than the 8.2% increase that analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting and above the 7.8% print recorded in July. The reading was the strongest since recordkeeping began in November 2010.

Producer prices rose 0.7% in August, slowing from the 1% increase the month prior. Economists were anticipating a 0.6% gain.  

Prices for final demand services rose 0.7% last month, making for the eighth straight monthly increase. More than 30% of the increase in prices for final demand services was due to a 7.8% rise in margins for health, beauty, and optical goods retailing

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Final demand goods prices rose 1% in August, accelerating from a 0.6% increase in July. Half of the gain was the result of a 2.9% rise in prices for final demand foods. 

Core producer prices, which exclude food and energy, climbed 6.7% annually and 0.6% in August. Analysts were expecting increases of 8.2% and 0.6%, respectively. The annual increase was the largest since the data set began in August 2014.