Americans just got some reassurances that inflation was slowing, and not reaccelerating, last month. The Producer Price Index, a wholesale inflation gauge that is being closely watched for tariff-related impacts,

US wholesale inflation remained unchanged in February, indicating a slowdown, but President Trump’s escalating trade wars with tariffs on steel, aluminium, and various imports may drive higher inflation.

While the overall producer price index came in flat, prices for goods increased by 0.3% in February, while services costs declined by 0.2%. On an annual basis, the PPI increased by 3.2%, down from 3.7% a month earlier. The flat reading for February beat expectations of economists, who had forecast an increase of 0.3% for the month.

Core wholesale prices, which exclude volatile food and energy costs, declined by 0.1 per cent from January—marking the first monthly decrease since July. On a yearly basis, core prices rose 3.4 per cent, down from 3.8 per cent in January, indicating a gradual cooling of inflationary pressures.

U.S. wholesale inflation decelerated last month, suggesting that price pressures are easing for now. But the progress may not last as President Trump intensifies his trade wars. The Labor Department reported Thursday that its producer price index — which tracks inflation before it reaches consumers — was unchanged from January

The readout comes as President Donald Trump ramps up his trade war with a wide range of U.S. trade partners, threatening to send inflation higher. He has effectively imposed 25% t

U.S. inflation saw an incremental decrease in February, inching down to a 2.8% annual rate, below January's 3% level and a reading lower than most economists were expecting for the second month of the year.