It will be an interesting day at the White House Briefing Room. Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, will be questioned by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics about the disturbing increase in the Producer Price Index (PPI), also known as the metric which measures inflation at wholesale levels.
It’s still very bad. Analysts and economists had predicted that September’s data would bring a turn in the economy’s favor, but it turned out to be a setback. CNBC reported that wholesale prices increased 0.4% in September for an annual increase of 8.5%.
CNBC added that the index grew 0.4% in the month, and 5.6% compared to a year ago, excluding food, energy, and trade services.
Although it doesn’t seem like much, this is quite significant considering that top analysts and financial algorithm forecasts predicted the number to increase in the opposite direction. According to the Dow Jones estimate, it was only 0.2%.
Many are now asking whether inflation numbers have peaked or if the pain caused by inflation, which has crippled American consumers since President Joe Biden entered the White House, will continue, increasing the financial pain we already feel.
It is unfortunate that the PPI data was released at a time when the midterm elections in 2022 are only four weeks away. This is especially true for President Biden and thousands of Democratic candidates. For the vast majority of American voters, inflation has been at the top. Unfortunately, that does not bode well for the party currently in power.
Fox Business examined the numbers:
After falling 1.1% in August, the overall price of goods increased by 0.4% in September. According to the Labor Department, the bulk of the price rise – 60% – can be attributed to a 1.2% monthly increase in food prices, which included a staggering 15.7% increase in the price of fresh and dried vegetables.
The price of energy rose 0.7% despite the 2.0% drop in gasoline prices. This is due in large part to an increase in the price of home heating oil, residential natural gas, and diesel fuel.
The services index saw a 0.4% increase in September, marking the fifth consecutive uptick. The index for final demand services, which excludes trade, transport, and warehousing, saw a 0.6% increase in September. This is the main reason for the September rise. In reality, final demand for transportation and warehouse services prices fell by 0.2%.
Jeffrey Roach, a chief economist at LPL Financial, confirmed that inflation is not going away any time soon. He told Fox News that the country should be prepared for impacts because the Federal Reserve’s rate-hike tactics have clearly failed as intended and that there will likely be more aggressive hikes in coming months.
Roach stated, “This report does not yet provide convincing evidence that inflation has cooled across a broad swathe of the economy.” “We can expect to see the Fed recommit itself to fighting inflation, at the risk that the economy will plunge into recession.”
The PPI is an important indicator. However, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is even more important. It is due out Thursday morning. Fox Business reported that economists surveyed believed the number could rise by 0.3%. This would be a drastic increase from August’s 0.1% increase, which was already bad.
If the CPI number is any higher than the PPI it will pose a problem for Biden or the Democrats. This will mean that millions of American voters will forget about the number when they vote on November 8.
Apart from historically aggressive Fed rate hikes that will wreak havoc on the economy, the worst thing about this dire situation is the fact that the Biden administration seems to not care. This is the frightening part.
