US: PPI up by 2.2% for the 12 months ended Feb., largest since Mar. 2012

The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 0.3% in February, final demand prices rose 0.6 % in January and 0.2 percent in December. On an unadjusted basis, the final demand index climbed 2.2% for the 12 months ended February 2017, the largest advance since a 2.4-percent increase in the 12 months ended March 2012, according to the official report released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Key findings

• In February, over 80 percent of the advance in the final demand index is attributable to a 0.4 percent increase in prices for final demand services.
• In February, a major factor in the increase in prices for final demand services was the index for traveler accommodation services, which rose 4.3 percent
• Prices for final demand goods moved up 0.3 percent in February, the sixth consecutive rise.
• Over half of the broad-based February increase can be traced to the index for final demand energy, which advanced 0.6 percent.
• Nearly 70 percent of the February increase in prices for final demand goods is attributable to the index for electric power, which climbed 1.6 percent