Wholesale Prices Rise on Food, Energy Costs

Wholesale prices rose last month due to higher costs for food and energy. But the increase isn’t likely to spark fears of widespread inflation.

The Labor Department says the producer price index, which measures price changes before they reach the consumer, increased 0.4 percent in September, after an equal rise in August.

Food costs rose 1.2 percent and energy prices increased 0.5 percent. Wholesale prices have increased by 4 percent in the past year.

Excluding volatile food and energy costs, core producer prices rose only 0.1 percent in September from the previous month. That rise was driven by higher car and truck prices.

WASHINGTON (AP)