US producer prices recorded their largest gain in more than three decades in November.
A spike in energy prices sent the producer price index up 2 per cent, the largest increase since a matching rise in November 1974, the US Labor Department said today.
Prices excluding volatile food and fuel jumped 1.3 per cent, the biggest increase since July 1980, as car and light truck prices bounced back from an October drop.
Stripping out vehicle prices, core producer prices were up just 0.2 per cent.
The nation's pace of home building also rose for the month in a sign of health for the housing sector. November new home starts climbed 6.7 per cent, rebounding from a sharp decline in October.
But building permits, an indicator of builder confidence, fell 3 per cent, the Commerce Department said. Expectations for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates shrank on the stronger-than-expected data.
US Treasury debt prices and stock index futures fell after the reports, while the dollar briefly regained some ground versus the euro.