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WASHINGTON - US wholesale prices fell 0.4 percent in September but core inflation -- excluding food and energy -- rose 0.4 percent, Labor Department data showed Wednesday.
The producer price index (PPI) showed its second consecutive monthly decline since the start of the year, after a 0.9 percent drop in August.
The headline number was in line with analysts' consensus forecasts, but core PPI rose double market expectations of a 0.2 percent rise.
Wholesale prices, which jumped 1.2 percent in July when oil hit record peaks above 147 dollars a barrel, have since eased as oil prices have tumbled on concerns about demand in a slowing global economy battered by the financial crisis.
Crude oil slumped below 72 dollars on Wednesday, its lowest level for more than 13 months, as recession fears raised concerns about a prolonged drop in energy demand.
"There is a prevailing expectation now that the plunge in oil and other commodity prices, and clear signs of a global economic slowdown, will manifest themselves in the inflation data in coming months," Briefing.com analysts wrote in a client note.
"Weakening demand should keep inflation and inflation expectations in check for the time being," they said.
- AFP /ls
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