The producer price index for finished goods rose 1.7% in August on a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, more than double the median estimate, as energy prices jumped, the Labor Department reported yesterday.
Core prices, which exclude food and energy, rose 0.2% in August and are 2.3% higher than a year ago.
Economists expected producer prices to rise 0.8% and for core prices to rise 0.1%, according to the median forecast from Thomson Reuters.