US annual PPI inflation softens to 2.4% in April

US Producer Price Index (PPI) slowed in April, but contracted on a monthly basis, indicating easing inflationary pressures in the world's largest economy.

PPI inflation slowed to 2.4% year-on-year (YoY), from 3.4% in March, below expectations of a 2.5% decline, data released by the US Department of Labor on Thursday showed.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile items such as food, energy, and trade services, slowed to 2.9% year-on-year.

The producer price index for final demand dropped 0.5% last month after an upwardly revised unchanged reading in March.

Wholesale services prices dropped 0.7%, the largest decline since the government started tracking the series in December 2009, after rising 0.4% in March.

This data comes after the Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed on Tuesday that the annual consumer price inflation rate slowed to 2.3% in April, compared to expectations of a flat reading of 2.4% in March.