Up 0.8% from prior month.
QUICK FACTS:
- Prices charged by U.S. businesses were up 10.8% in May compared to 2021 and rose 0.8% compared to the prior month, according to a Tuesday news release from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- The numbers signify the sixth straight month that the government’s producer price inflation gauge continued at or above 10%, emphasizing how inflation shows no sign of slowing.
- Even the core price index, which ignores food, energy, and supplier margins, rose 0.5% after already rising 0.4% the prior month.
- Prices are rising at a faster pace than wages.
PRODUCT PRICES ON THE RISE:
“Forty percent of the May increase in prices for final demand goods can be attributed to an 8.4-percent advance in the index for gasoline,” the bureau said. “Prices for jet fuel, residential natural gas, steel mill products, diesel fuel, and processed young chickens also moved higher. Conversely, the index for beef and veal fell 9.5 percent. Prices for iron and steel scrap and for commercial electric power also decreased.”
SERVICE PRICES ON THE RISE:
“Nearly 30 percent of the May increase in the index for final demand services can be attributed to prices for truck transportation of freight, which rose 2.9 percent,” the bureau notes. “The indexes for services related to securities brokerage and dealing (partial), machinery and equipment wholesaling, chemicals and allied products wholesaling, automobiles and automobile parts retailing, and transportation of passengers (partial) also advanced. In contrast, margins for fuels and lubricants retailing declined 21.7 percent. The indexes for portfolio management and for guestroom rental also moved lower.”
