Energy, food top surge in prices

WASHINGTON – A spike in oil and food costs pushed wholesale prices up last month by the biggest amount in nearly a year, a trend that could threaten the still-fragile global economy.

The Producer Price Index, which measures price changes before they reach consumers, rose 1.1 percent in December, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was up from a 0.8 percent rise in November and was the largest increase since January 2010.

Outside the volatile energy and food categories, so-called core prices rose just 0.2 percent, down from a 0.3 percent rise in November. That lower reading indicates overall inflation remains tame. For all of 2010, core prices rose just 1.3 percent last year. That was up from a 0.9 percent increase in 2009 but still historically low.

Still, the rise in commodity prices is putting pressure on retailers. Most have so far resisted passing along price increases to consumers in the weak economy.

Separately, the Labor Department said more people applied for unemployment benefits last week after retailers shed temporary holiday employees.

And November exports climbed to their highest level in more than two years, helping to narrow the U.S. trade deficit to its lowest point in more than two years, the Commerce Department said.