US producer price inflation eases to still-high 8.5%

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation at the wholesale level rose 8.5% in September from a year earlier, its third straight decline though it is still at a painfully high level. Wednesday’s report from the Labor Department also showed that the producer price index — which measures price changes before they reach the consumer — rose 0.4% in September from August, after two months of declines.