A report published Friday by the U.S. Labor Department showed that producer prices rose more than anticipated in January, signaling continued underlying price pressures.
According to the data, the producer price index (PPI) for final demand increased by 0.5% during the month, following a December gain that was revised lower to 0.4%.
Economists had forecast a smaller monthly rise of 0.3%, compared with the initially reported 0.5% increase for December.
On an annual basis, producer price growth eased slightly to 2.9% in January from 3.0% the previous month. Analysts had expected the yearly rate to slow further to 2.8%.