Wholesale prices for goods and services were nearly unchanged in February, showing that inflation remains tame.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that final-demand prices for goods rose 0.3% in February, but the increase was offset by a 0.2% decline in the price of services. The cost of final demand goods, without the volatile categories of food and energy, increased by 0.2% in February after rising 0.3% in January. For the previous 12 months ending in February, prices for demand goods, less food, energy and trade services increased 3.3%.
Food costs rose 1.7%, with two-thirds of the increase coming from the skyrocketing price of eggs, which rose 53.6% month over month. Prices for pork, fresh and dry vegetables, electric power, tobacco products and carbon steel scrap also moved higher.
The 0.2% decline in the cost of services was the largest drop since last July. Trade services fell 1.0% and transportation and warehousing prices were unchanged.
More than 40% of the February decline in prices for final demand services was from reductions in the margins for machinery and vehicle wholesaling, which fell 1.4%. Residential real estate loans were cheaper and gasoline fell by 4.7%. Other items that saw price declines include alcohol, apparel, automobiles and footwear.