- Richard Curtin, survey director
US wholesale prices were pushed down by declining gas and food costs in November, adding to signs that cheaper oil worldwide is curbing inflationary pressures. Producer price index dropped 0.2% in November, after climbing by the same amount a month earlier, according to the Labor Department. However, a core measure of producer inflation, which excludes food, energy and trade services, was flat. Measured on an annual basis, the core index climbed just 1.5%, and the annual gauge has been falling a tenth of a point each month since September. The PPI is a forerunner to the more crucial CPI data that will be released on Wednesday. Economists forecast consumer prices in the world's number one economy remained subdued in November, sliding to the negative territory after last month's zero growth. That could be worrisome for the Fed policy makers, who are seen to debate this week whether to keep a pledge that interest rates will stay at ultra-low level for a "considerable time." Inflation has already been below the Fed targeted 2% for most of the past two years, and falling gas prices could drive it even lower. Separately, consumer sentiment rose to a near the highest level in eight years in December amid improved jobs and wages prospects as well as lower gasoline prices. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's preliminary reading came in at 93.8, the highest since January 2007.
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