Wall Street Journal (08/14/15) Jeffrey Sparshott; Kate Davidson

The producer price index increased for the third consecutive month in July, a sign inflation has stabilized following months of historically weak readings. The producer-price index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.2% in July after climbing 0.4% in June, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Core prices, which exclude food and energy, rose 0.3%. Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had forecast overall and core producer prices would rise 0.1%.

Wall Street Journal (08/14/15) Eric Morath

Industrial production increased a seasonally adjusted 0.6% in July from June, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve. The measure has risen for two consecutive months after beginning the year with five monthly decreases.

Meanwhile, capacity utilization rose 0.3 percentage points to 78.0% in July from June. Capacity utilization has climbed 1.7 percentage points over the past year, but is 2.1 percentage points below its average since 1972. Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal had expected a 0.4% increase in industrial production and capacity utilization of 78.0%.

Wall Street Journal (08/13/15) Ben Leubsdorf

Approximately 82% of economists believe the U.S. Federal Reserve will implement a short-term interest rate increase in September, according to a survey by the Wall Street Journal. Thirteen percent of surveyed economists say the central bank will wait until December to increase rates.

According to Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart, “it would take a significant deterioration in the economic picture” for the central bank to be disinclined to move ahead at the September meeting. Fed Chairman Janet Yellen has acknowledged the concerns of economists who worry the Fed will act too late or too soon, consistently assuring that any rise in rates will occur “cautiously and gradually,” whenever it does happen.