The December Producer Price Index didn’t just beat expectations, but it also revealed a persistent problem that forces markets to rethink the entire 2026 rate path.
Final demand PPI rose 0.5% month-over-month, the sharpest jump since July, driven almost entirely by a 0.7% surge in services while goods prices sat flat. The headline came in at 3.0% year over year, beating expectations of 2.7%, but core PPI rose to 3.3% from 2.9%, the highest level since July 2025.
Markets sold the news immediately. Bitcoin…