US producer inflation eases to 4.6% in February

US annual producer inflation eased to 4.6% in February, according to Labor Department data released Wednesday.

The figure marks a slowing from January’s annual gain of 5.7%, which was revised downward from 6%.

It is also a significant retreat from the record annual jump of 11.7% in March.

The producer price index (PPI), which measures changes in the price of goods and services from a producer perspective, was also lower than estimates of a 5.4% gain for February.

PPI fell 0.1% in February, against expectations of a 0.3% increase. The January figure was revised to a 0.3% gain from an increase of 0.7%.

“Over 80 percent of the February decline in the index for final demand goods can be attributed to a 36.1-percent drop in prices for chicken eggs. The indexes for residential natural gas, fresh and dry vegetables, diesel fuel, home heating oil, and primary basic organic chemicals also fell,” the Labor Department said in a statement.

Core producer prices, which exclude food, energy and trade, moved up 0.2% in February after rising 0.5% in January.

Core PPI in February climbed 4.4% on an annual basis, following a 4.4% rise in January.