US: Annual PPI drops to 1.3% in February vs. 1.8% expected

• Annual PPI in US declined sharply in February.
• US Dollar Index advanced beyond 97 despite disappointing PPI figures.

The Producer Price Index (PPI) in February declined to 1.3% on a yearly basis in February from 2.1% in January, the data published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics showed. This reading came in lower than the market expectation of 1.8%.

Further details of the report revealed that the core PPI in the same period fell to 1.4% from 1.7% annually and was -0.3% on a monthly basis.

USD reaction

Despite these reading, the US Dollar Index, which tracks the USD's performance against a basket of six major currencies, renewed its weekly highs above 97. As of writing, the index was up 0.45% on the day at 97.05.