US Producer Prices Surge 10% in February... Inflation Pressure

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] In the United States, suffering from the highest inflation in 40 years, wholesale prices have also surged by double digits, keeping inflationary pressures from easing. This is expected to further strengthen the Federal Reserve's (Fed) path of interest rate hikes.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor on the 15th (local time), the Producer Price Index (PPI) for February rose 10.0% compared to the same month last year. This is the highest since related statistics began in 2009. Compared to the previous month, it increased by 0.8%. This largely aligns with expert forecasts.

This sharp rise in inflation is confirmed to be due to increases in wholesale prices of energy and food. However, the impact of soaring raw material prices such as oil due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine is expected to be fully reflected starting from the March PPI, leading to expectations that inflationary pressures will intensify further. The PPI is an indicator showing inflationary pressure from the production side.

The core PPI, which excludes volatile food and energy, rose 6.6% year-over-year and 0.2% month-over-month.

Earlier released U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) for February surged 7.9% compared to the same month last year, marking the highest in 40 years. With the additional PPI data released on this day confirming continued inflationary pressures, it is expected to influence the Fed's future tightening moves. The market widely anticipates that the Fed will raise interest rates this week.