MW: October producer prices fall record 2.8%, gasoline plummets
By Ruth Mantell
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. producer prices fell a record 2.8% in October, the most since 1947, as gasoline prices plummeted a record 24.9%, the Labor Department reported Tuesday. Overall finished energy goods prices fell 12.8%, the most since 1986, while food prices declined 0.2%. Excluding food and energy, core producer prices rose 0.4% in October. Analysts polled by MarketWatch were looking for a decrease of 1.6% in overall PPI, and a 0.1% increase in the core rate. Producer prices are up 5.2% over the past 12 months. Further back in the production pipeline, prices for intermediate goods fells a record 3.9% in October, while prices for crude goods fell a record 18.6%.
