WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- The U.S. Producer Price Index for finished goods rose for the 11th consecutive month in May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday.
The price of finished goods rose 0.2 percent after climbing 0.8 percent in April and 0.7 percent in March.
Food prices in May dropped 1.4 percent after climbing 0.3 percent in April.
Energy prices rose 1.5 percent, the smallest month-to-month increase of the year and the smallest increase in the past nine months.
Core prices for finished goods, which exclude food and energy prices, rose 0.2 percent, which was lower than expected.
Falling energy prices for the month validated Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's early statements that price increases would prove "transitory."
