Rising energy costs pushed wholesale prices up a greater-than-expected 1.0% in March, but the producer price index excluding food and energy was flat, a Labor Department report said Friday.Analysts polled by Reuters were expecting a 0.7% gain in overall producer prices and a 0.2% rise in so-called core producer prices, which don't include volatile food and energy sectors.
The flat reading on core prices suggests that in March, inflation was not spreading throughout a wide range of goods in the economy. It's an improvement from February, when core prices rose a sharp 0.4%.
Overall, the producer price index rose 3.2% from March a year ago, biggest 12-month climb since a 3.8% gain in August 2006.
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