PPI rises in February
The Producer Price Index for final demand rose 0.6 percent in February, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday.
Here's the chart for ten commodities that factor heavily in the hardware and building supply industry.
The trade group Associated Builders and Contractors analyzed the data and found input prices increased 1.0% in January compared to the previous month. Nonresidential construction input prices increased 0.9% for the month.
“Construction materials prices surged in January, ending a streak of three consecutive monthly declines,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While this represents the largest monthly increase since August 2023, input prices are essentially unchanged over the past year, up less than half a percentage point. As a result of relatively tame input costs, a plurality of contractors expects their profit margins to expand over the next six months, according to ABC's Construction Confidence Index.
