Producer Price Inflation

If you thought things cost more these days, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics can confirm your suspicions. According to the BLS, on an unadjusted basis, prices for finished goods, including food and energy, moved up 7.2% for the 12 months ended July 2011.

The BLS reported its Producer Price Index for finished goods rose a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in July, reversing a 0.4% decrease in June. The finished goods index, measuring prices for finished goods -- less foods and energy -- rose 0.4%.

In July, the finished consumer foods index rose 0.6% for the second consecutive month. A major contributor to the July increase was beef and veal prices, which moved up 2.7%. Higher prices for fresh fruits and melons also played a significant role in the finished foods advance.

On the positive side, the finished energy goods index moved down 0.6% in July, the second straight decline, as prices for gasoline fell 2.8%.

The Producer Price Index for the net output of transportation and warehousing industries increased 0.2% in July, the smallest advance since December 2010. Over 90% of the July increase is attributable to a 1.1% rise in prices received by the scheduled passenger air transportation companies. Higher prices received by the freight transportation arrangement companies and petroleum pipeline companies also contributed to the advance in the transportation and warehousing industries index.