2021.02.1712:43:00UTC+00U.S. Producer Prices Surge Much More Than Expected In January

Partly reflecting a continued spike in energy prices, the Labor Department released a report on Wednesday showing U.S. producer prices jumped by much more than expected in the month of January.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand surged up by 1.3 percent in January after rising by 0.3 percent in December. Economists had expected producer prices to increase by 0.4 percent.

Excluding food and energy prices, core producer prices still shot up by 1.2 percent in January after inching up by 0.1 percent in December. Core prices were expected to edge up by 0.2 percent.