Wholesale Prices Rise More Than Expected, Suggesting Inflation Stuck in High Gear

A measure of producer price inflation came in hotter than expected, suggesting price pressures remain high and the fight to tame inflation will take longer.

U.S. President Joe Biden, flanked by Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (R), hosts a meeting inside the Cabinet Room at the White House in Washington on Oct. 20, 2023. Tom Brenner/Pool/Getty Images

After hotter-than-expected retail inflation data sent stocks plunging earlier this week, a measure of wholesale inflation has also come in higher than markets expected, fanning fears that inflationary pressures are making a comeback.

The Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures prices received by producers of goods and services, rose 0.3 percent month over month in January, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a 0.1 percent rise.