Wholesale prices post modest increase in June

WASHINGTON — Inflation at the wholesale level remained muted in June.

The Labor Department says its producer price index, which measures prices before they reach consumers, rose 0.1 percent last month after being flat in May. The index was up 2 percent in June from a year earlier.

Most of the increase came from rising prices for services, including a 4 percent jump in the cost of investment services.

Excluding volatile food and energy prices, wholesale inflation was up 0.1 percent last month from May and 1.9 percent from a year earlier.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen told Congress Wednesday that Fed officials are planning to continue raising short-term interest rates but are keeping close watch on inflation, which by most measures is running below the Fed's 2 percent target.