The Producer Price Index for finished goods dipped a seasonally adjusted 0.1% for September, according to a Labor Department report (link opens as PDF) released today.
After August's index increased 0.3% due primarily to rising gas and vegetable prices, this latest report missed analyst expectations of a 0.2% increase .
Source: Labor Department
Diving deeper, a 1% dip in food prices was the main source of this month's price decrease, pushed lower by a nearly 18% drop in the prices of fresh and dry vegetables. In contrast, finished energy goods bumped up 0.5% in price, due primarily to a 6% increase in home heating oil prices. Excluding food and energy, two fairly volatile goods, producer prices edged up 0.1%, matching analyst expectations.
Moving back along the supply chain, prices for intermediate goods increased 0.1%, while crude goods prices moved up 0.5%.
