U.S. wholesale prices were flat in August, mostly because of sharp declines in the cost of food and gasoline.
Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had predicted a 0.1% increase in the producer price index.
In August, the wholesale cost of food tumbled 1.6%, the biggest drop in almost three and a half years. Gasoline prices slid 2.5%.
U.S. wholesale prices have been tame for years. In the past 12 months, the producer price index is unchanged.
If the volatile food, energy and trade margin categories are stripped out, so-called core prices rose a faster 0.3%. Look at that way, costs have risen 1.2% in the past year, the highest 12-month rate since the end of 2014.
Still, the cost of raw and partially finished goods aren’t showing much upward pressure at the wholesale level.
A separate report on consumer prices has been similarly subdued. While housing and health care costs have climbed, prices of food and gas have fallen to keep inflation on the low side.